Doing The Impossible
by lmyers3
Summary: Jet has always known who he is and what he has to do. But then she comes into his life, and everything becomes complicated. Can one girl really change everything? Jetara, canon compliant.
1. Prologue: Seven Years Before

.: Prologue: 7 Years Before :.

_"Mommy, look!" I shouted, scampering up to her. My chubby eight year old body would only move so fast, but my mother dashed forward and met me halfway. She seized me in her arms and flung me into the air. I laughed in spite of myself, but when she started doing it again, I had to stop her. "Mommy, no!"_

_"Why not, Xin?" Her brown eyes danced as she set me down on the ground._

_"Because you'll crush them!" I told her proudly, sticking out my hand._

_She gasped and one hand flew to her heart. "Flowers? Oh, Xin, they're lovely!" My mother took them and disappeared inside. It was the last time I would ever see her, but I didn't know that then and ran down to the pond. Cherry blossoms spun in the air around me, as scattered as my thoughts._

_"Son!" a voice boomed. I felt my face break into a wide grin and sprinted down the hill towards him._

_"Daddy!" I shrieked, leaping into his arms. He held me tight for a minute before turning me loose and tousling my hair._

_"There's my little warrior," he growled proudly. "So, tell me, Sergeant Jet, is there any news on the war front?" I straightened at the use of our secret name. _Jet._ It was so much better than my real name._

_"I licked a whole legion of soldiers just for you, dad," I told him happily. He clapped me on the shoulder like I was a real war hero, as if the soldiers I'd fought had actually existed._

_"Great job, son. Learn any new moves today?" I smiled – THIS was what I'd been waiting for. Those battles with legions of soldiers might not have been real, but my skills were. I pulled my hooked swords out from behind my back and shouted fiercely, cutting down my imaginary opponent. He dodged and I went after him._

_"Get back here!" I shouted._

_"Got him on the run, son?" my dad hollered. I turned and wheeled back towards him. His words from the other day bounced around in my head – a true warrior admits defeat – and I hung my head sadly._

_"He was too far away. He got away," I grumbled._

_"Oh, really? Let me show you something that you can do with those swords, Sergeant Jet. No one will ever get away from you again." He plucked them from my hands and linked the hooks together. My father gripped one handle and spun it around expertly. The other sword whirled and twirled until it was a glimmering blur in the setting sun. Gradually, dad slowed down and returned the swords to me._

_"Can you show me how to do that?" I gasped. My dad laughed, a deep rumbling noise in his chest._

_"Of course, Sergeant—" We both froze at the same time and tuned towards the top of the hill. Our house was hidden from view, but something else lazily wound its way into eyesight. This was the image that started off my waking nightmare. Smoke was rising into the crystal blue sky. My dad sprinted up the hill towards our house. I started up after him, but he stopped and stared at me with wild chestnut eyes._

_"Jet, stay here!" he commanded. I froze instinctively and he continued up the hill. Curiosity took over, and I did the unthinkable as a soldier: I disobeyed the direct order and went up anyway._

_I crested the hill just in time to see my dad disappear in the back door of our house. But something was wrong – the air was superheated and our house was on fire._

_"Daddy!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. A loud groan overpowered my voice and my home collapsed in upon itself. In a blaze of heat and light, my world was gone. Time froze for me, but the flames kept burning and ash swept over me. I started coughing violently and fell to my knees. That was how they found me, I suppose. All I know was that after I started coughing, I heard their voices for the first time. I saw them for the first time._

_They were metallic, echoing, and fake sounding. Three of them were riding armored rhinos, and at least ten others were on foot. They all wore the masks, those terrifying masks that reminded me of skulls. Fire Nation Soldiers! I pulled out my swords and prepared to fight. The one closest to me laughed and kicked at me. I scrambled away from the flames he threw, clinging to my swords for dear life._

_"Where's my daddy?" I demanded hoarsely. "What did you do to him?"_

_The soldier who'd kicked at me laughed and pointed to the charred rubble that was once my home. "Your dad's in there, kid. I don't think you'll be seeing him again." Even my eight-year-old brain understood what that meant. Tears burned in my eyes – a thousand times more painful than the flames that had burned in my home. My heart seared with anger. A single scorched cherry blossom twirled through the air and landed on my sleeve. I brushed it off thoughtlessly, my body trembling._

_"I hate you!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. It had literally ripped from my mouth, a strange inhuman sound. It hurt to do that, but I wanted the pain. Pain was safer than sorrow. "I'm going to destroy your lives like you destroyed mine!" Then I turned and ran away into the foothills, one sword in each fist. I turned and ran away, leaving my burning home and dead parents and ruined life behind me._

Those last words might have seemed a little harsh to you, but I think they were just the right words to say. The Fire Nation has destroyed so many lives, and yet no one's done anything to stop them. They deserve payback, and I'm dishing it out, me and my Freedom Fighters. One town at a time, we're winning this war. We're stopping the Fire Nation. We're doing the impossible.

"Jet." Smellerbee's voice snapped me out of my reverie. I looked over into her intelligent brown eyes, saying nothing. If she had something to tell me, she'd get around to it. Smellerbee ran her fingers through her light brown bands nervously. She'd redone the paint under her eyes, I'd noticed. It looked nice. "We've found our next target, Jet. The Fire Nation's just arrived."

"Where?" I asked, my mind making up various plans. If it was a far away village, we'd have to go in three week shifts. I'd stay round the clock, of course. The Freedom Fighters might be helping me with this war, but it was still MY war. It was still MY fight, my revenge, and my vendetta. They were all too young to understand. _Maybe Smellerbee and Longshot could rotate staying here while I'm gone… but then, Longshot was never one to give orders._

"Jet, they're here in the valley," Smellerbee told me tentatively.

I jumped to my feet, furious. "What? How DARE they come here!"

**A/N: I wrote _Doing The Impossible_**** while in high school, and I have not edited it since. I figured this was the best way to stay away from OOC tendencies, because ATLA ended before Junior Year.**_**  
><strong>_

**I believe I wrote this as a personal challenge to myself. Feel free to R&R if you'd like, but if not then that's cool too.  
><strong>

**Poor Jet :(**


	2. Chapter One: Two Years Before

.: Chapter 1: Two Years Before :.

I crept into town, clinging tight to my hooked swords. Night made an amazing cover for me and I slipped into and out of the shadows unnoticed. This town was so familiar, it was gut wrenching; yet at the same time it was completely different. I paused in front of a well-lit window and ducked. Scents of food found their way to my nose and my stomach growled – a side effect of living in the woods for six years. I froze, hoping no one had heard me.

Several minutes passed before I continued on my way through the village. I knew the Fire Nation was here, subduing these people. I had to stop them before they burned this place to the ground. I had to find them tonight, before anyone spent another minute under their tyranny.

"Halt!" a metallic voice ordered. "There are no weapons allowed here! Put your hands where I can see them!" The old feelings of hatred from my parents' deaths washed over me and I smiled. I'd learned that when you smiled, they got afraid. The Fire Nation was used to terrifying dominance, not confident resistance. True to form, the soldier hesitated before making up his mind. My smile deepened – he'd just made his fatal mistake.

I rushed him, my hooks pointed right for his chest. He tried to shift but I was too quick. I adjusted and lunged for his head. One of the hooks caught in the eye holes of his mask and I yanked, hard. His face slammed into the ground and I jumped onto his back. _That's for dad._ The soldier didn't move again.

I stood, triumphant, until shouts rang into he night air. I turned to face the new threat and found myself surrounded my Fire Nation soldiers. There were at least thirty of them, but I straightened. I was thirteen, and driven to succeed. They had no chance. They stood and stared at me, sizing me up. Then, one broke ranks.

He charged at me, an axe held high over his head. I skipped away to one side, hooking my sword around the base of the axe shaft. I tugged and the axe fell free of the soldier's grip, connecting solidly with his helmet. Even with the extra protection, he dropped like a stone. I waited, panting, glaring at each and every one of the remaining soldiers. They waited too, their postures wary. _They think I'm a threat. Good._

The next attackers came in a pair, but they weren't any more skilled than the others. They fell without a fight. Every soldier who opposed me fell, until there was only one left. I waited again, wondering why this one had held back. _He has self-restraint, _a voice warned me. _He knows what he's doing._ Slowly, he reached his hand up to his face plate and removed the mask. Then, as an afterthought, he removed the entire helmet.

In the moonlit night, he looked half-crazy. Maybe that's because he WAS crazy. I, a teenage boy, had just taken down his soldiers single-handedly. Either way, the way his eyebrows knitted together and his mouth set in a straight line showed that he was angry. His brown hair was cropped short, but it sprouted a pair of legs and traveled down the sides of his face. The entire effect – brown hair, brown sideburns – made him look like an angry monkey fish. _Fire Nation monkey fish,_ I snorted to myself.

"Who do you think you are?" he snapped, taunting me. His voice was rough and gravelly, but confident.

"I think I'm someone you should be afraid of, Soldier," I kept my voice confident, too. There was no way that I was backing down.

"That's Commander Zhao to you," he told me. I crouched down, my swords at the ready. He struck suddenly, attacking with Firebending. I dodged quickly, my brain reforming my original plan around this new variable. He kicked at me again and I fell to the ground, rolling off to his left. He struck with Fire a third time, and I dodged again. This time, though, when I got up, something was burning. I could smell it. I looked around behind me in horror – I had been standing in front of someone's home.

I couldn't bring myself to do anything but stare as the fire consumed the building. _Are there people in there?_ My body wouldn't move. I heard the screams again, like they were fresh in my head.

_"Jet, stay here!"_

It was my childhood all over again. The flames licked greedily up the sides of the wooden house. _Who lived here? They had a life and a family and a history… and the Fire Nation destroyed it._ This last thought brought me back to Earth and I whirled around to face Commander Zhao. My chest was heaving as I tried not to cry. He smiled at me, a predator's smile, and punched out with his left fist. I flinched away from the flames, but they were many feet to my right. I followed their path, turning to watch them travel. _Where are they going?_

I soon got my answer – the flames struck another house, this one with a family and children seated in the window. The door was the first part of the house to catch fire, and I watched as their quiet family evening was disrupted. Their faces turned to horror and they looked out their window desperately. They locked eyes with me and I stared back at them, mind whirling. Zhao took advantage of my distraction and pummeled me in the back with fire. I bit back a shout of pain and moved out of the way of his next attack.

He only smiled and shot out towards another house.

"Stop!" I commanded.

Zhao laughed, right in my face. "Why should I? Is it bothering you? Well I don't care!" He set another home on fire, and then another one. I rushed him, my eyes filling with tears. The scent of smoke and the heat was overwhelming me. I couldn't take it; it was too much like my home and my childhood. "Oops," he laughed as he sidestepped my harried attack. "You missed. But I won't." He shot another blast of fire and another home went up.

"I hate you!" I screamed, grief giving way to rage.

_This is what the Fire Nation does. They hurt and burn and destroy things. They torment and laugh about it. They're monsters. They don't deserve to live._

"Once again, I don't care," Zhao laughed. By this time, the entire village had caught fire. The light danced on his face, casting deep shadows that made him look crazier than before. Then, suddenly, his face froze in that laughing position. He fell to the ground, an arrow in the back of his knee. I looked up to the space behind Zhao and found a young boy. He was wearing a straw hat, and he looked to be around ten, only three years younger than me.

He had dark eyes and a very serious posture. A bow was his weapon of choice, clenched in his right hand. The boy looked at Zhao as the Commander twitched on the ground, unable to get up.

His voice was quiet, but I could hear it over the crackling of flames. "I do." He walked over to me, stepping over Zhao as if he were an unpleasant mess upon the ground… which wasn't that far from the truth.

"Hey," I said. "You're a pretty good shot."

"I practice," the boy shrugged.

"You got a name?" I asked.

"Yeah. But you can call me Longshot." He looked over his shoulder at the burning homes, and I wondered if he could hear the screams as clearly as I could. Maybe he'd blocked them out. I wished I could. "I think that my old life is over with."

"Want a new one?" I smiled confidently. This kid could be useful to me. "I'm going to take down the Fire Nation single-handedly."

"Maybe I can help," Longshot told me. I nodded and we walked down the road. I paused for a minute, looking behind me. The flames still danced merrily in the moonlight. I stared the longest at the charred rubble of the second home, the one with the children in it. _Did they make it?_

I turned away. No one ever made it.

But everything had its price, I suppose. The important thing was that I'd done it. This village was free of the Fire Nation forever.

**A/N: Whoops! Accidentally posted the prologue twice. Here you go, readers! I don't even think anyone is reading this. It's only been posted for about an hour, ahaha X)**


	3. Chapter Two: One Year Before

.: Chapter 2: One Year Before :.

"Jet, come here!" I looked over at Pipsqueak, annoyed.

"What is it, Pipsqueak? You know we have to get ready to leave soon. Sneers just found us a village that's crawling with the Fire Nation!" I was hard at work, packing up my tent. Longshot had already extinguished the fire and scattered the ashes, as well as broken up the circle of rocks around it. It was like we'd never been here, or it would if Pipsqueak would clean up his tent!

I marched over to him, completely fed up with his antics. I'd found Pipsqueak and Sneers together. Sneers had some talent for spotting people – he was the official lookout for the group. I sometimes thought the boy could literally SMELL the Fire Nation coming; he was just that good. He'd even come up with the idea of a bird call when we spotted someone. It was a good idea, considering "Hey, look, Fire Nation! Let's get 'em!" was usually too much warning.

But Pipsqueak… I'd let him join because of Sneers, and the fact that the guy was a brute. He'd saved my neck a couple of times. I wasn't afraid to admit that. Still, sometimes his lack of brainpower wasn't compensated for by his brute strength. He was starting to throw us off schedule.

"What is it, Pipsqueak? It'd better be good, because you still haven't packed up your tent and—"

"Check it out, Jet!" he shouted, shoving something warm and wriggling into my face.

"Hey!" I shouted, bringing up my hands to shield myself. My fingers hit skin and I opened my eyes, backing away a couple of steps. I looked down to see a little boy, wearing a ragtag uniform like most of us here. He looked up at me quietly. Suddenly, he became aware of the fact that his nose was running and wiped it on his arm. I smiled in spite of myself. The kid had bright red juice all over his mouth. "Find him in the food stores?"

"Yep. He was eating all of our lychee nuts."

"Hey, kid, you got a name?"

"Nope."

"What're you doing here?"

"I ain't got anywhere else to go," he told me plainly. "And I was hungry."

"You want to fight the Fire Nation, kid?" I asked.

"Sure." He didn't say anything else, but the word was full of emotion and his eyes flashed. I stared at him a little more carefully – he could only have been eight or nine, and already the Fire Nation had destroyed his life. _He'll get his revenge today,_ I promised myself silently.

"Let's go then, The Duke." I don't know what made me say it, but it came out. Pipsqueak laughed and set The Duke on his shoulders.

"Come on, The Duke. You can walk with me."

"Where're we going?" The Duke chirped, curious and comfortable already.

"We're going to free another village from the Fire Nation, kid," I told him, tossing him a spear. He caught it easily and held it aloft. "That is, if Pipsqueak there ever packs up his tent."

"Sorry, Jet," Pipsqueak rumbled. I nodded and he started packing up his stuff.

The town was quiet, overshadowed by a forest. The forest was the key to everything. It was our cover and our hideout, somewhere that we knew better than the Fire Nation ever could. Once or twice, we'd talked about building a house in the woods, but I didn't want that to happen. Homes were too permanent, and homes could be destroyed. Most of the Freedom Fighters had learned that lesson the hard way.

Longshot looked at me from his perch in the trees, his quiet eyes telling me he was ready. The poor kid had only grown more withdrawn as time went on. _The work of the Fire Nation, ruining another childhood, _I thought to myself. I think crowds made him nervous – probably reminded him of the Fire Nation too much. I clenched my fists. Did the Fire Nation have to ruin everything?

Lost in thought, I didn't hear the rustling bushes, or Sneer's bird call, until it was too late. Suddenly I was in a tiny pair of arms, something sharp pressed to my throat. It felt like a rock, but I could only be sure that it wasn't a dagger.

"Hey!" I protested.

"Quiet," the voice snapped. I froze in shock. _A GIRL?_ "Got any food?"

"Yeah," I muttered.

"Give it to me. I'm hungry."

"Pipsqueak," I snapped. "Give this girl the lychee nuts."

"But Jet," he protested, "The Duke's going to need to eat sometime." I glared at him fiercely until he cowered and dug through our stuff to find the lychee nuts. I tried to look at Longshot, hoping that he had a clear shot. Maybe then we could take care of this girl and move on with our lives. But Longshot was staring at her, something moving in his unreadable dark eyes.

"What do you think you're doing?" The Duke piped up, springing from his place in the nearby bushes. "You can't treat Jet that way!" I felt the girl freeze.

"What the heck is this?" she hissed. "What are you?" she demanded of me. "Some kind of crazed kidnapper?"

"Not exactly," I replied. "How do you explain HIM?" I pointed to Pipsqueak, who waved like a complete idiot. "No. I'm not a kidnapper. My name's Jet, and these are my Freedom Fighters. We're TRYING to free this town of the Fire Nation, but you just got in our way and I don't think we'll be able to pull it off now." The girl dropped me like I'd burned her. I took out my hooked swords and whirled to face her.

She was kind of short, a lot smaller than me. Her brown hair was cropped short for a girl, but it was just as long as mine was. She had brown eyes that weren't focused on me, just roving around from face to face. What struck me most of all about this girl was that she was wearing a dress made of purple and silvery… stuff. It looked kind of shiny, the type of thing that I'd have been able to afford if the Fire Nation hadn't intervened.

"What are you doing here?" I demanded.

"Running away," she answered. "The Fire Nation just took over my parents' lands. I have nothing." Her voice sounded like she wanted to cry, but she didn't. I nodded, impressed.

"How did you sneak up on us like that?" I asked pointedly, the question for both her and Sneers.

"I've always been good at sneaking around," she replied in her quiet voice. "It's one of my many skills." She paused and looked around again. "Are you all guys or what?"

"Yep. All guys. Even our reinforcements back there—" several kids popped out of the trees and waved. I couldn't even remember all of their names "—are all guys."

"Hmmm…" the girl mused. "Hey, can I help?" I looked at her, surprised.

"You want to… help?" She nodded eagerly now, but once again her eyes weren't fixed on me. I followed her gaze and found her staring at Longshot. _This might be good for the kid,_ I sighed to myself. _Maybe he'll open up a bit or something._

_Hang on a second, Jet. This is war. People's lives have been destroyed. You can't just invite people to join us willy-nilly, or the Fire Nation could infiltrate._

I glared at her, suddenly realizing how convenient this story was. NO ONE snuck up on Sneers. Maybe she was actually working for the Fire Nation, a spy coming to eliminate me. But she still shouldn't have been able to sneak up like that. Unless… Sneers was in on it, too.

_Now you're talking crazy. Just invite her in and get on with it!_

"You sure you're not Fire Nation?" I asked carefully.

"If I was," she smirked, "would I tell you?" She stuck out her hand, and I took it.

"Got a name?"

"Yeah, but somehow I don't think that matters anymore."

"Smellerbee!" The Duke called.

The girl smiled. "I like the sound of it."

"Nice to meet you, Smellerbee," I said. After we'd shaken hands, I took a second look at her. "Maybe we need to get you some different clothes."

**A/N: And the traditional Freedom Fighters are now complete! ****I tried to stick with what Bryke gave me when it came to the kids joining the group. Also, if you've noticed that Jet is a little OBSESSED with the Fire Nation... well, that's how he came off to me while I wrote this. Obsessed. Maybe his obsessions will change throughout the story (hint, hint), but the general personality stays the same.**


	4. Chapter Three: Six Months Before

.: Chapter 3: Six Months Before :.

We'd mostly built the tree house for Smellerbee's sake. Longshot, in one of the longest speeches he'd ever given, insisted that she'd grown up in a home. "Girls need a house to come home to," he'd said. I knew the reason behind it wasn't logic, but his feelings for her. Nevertheless, I had to agree. Our group was getting a little too large to be hanging around a single campfire at night, and two or three campfires would be like a giant beacon to the Fire Nation.

So I sent the younger Freedom Fighters to the task of building it, and they'd pulled through. We now had our own house to come home to after destroying more of the Fire Nation outposts and occupations. I even had my own room, where I slept in a corner near the window. The entire place was inaccessible unless one of the Freedom Fighters knew you. Then they'd toss down a rope, and when you had a secure hold, you'd fly up into the trees and disappear. The clever guys even made a pulley system to fly around from house to house. We'd worked so hard to get to where we were.

I'd worked harder than any of them. Sure, they'd seen their villages burned down before their eyes, but they had found me. I hadn't found anyone. I survived alone for six years before I really started punishing the Fire Nation for everything they've done to me. Those years in the wilderness had changed me. I wasn't the cute, chubby little eight year old anymore. I wasn't Xin anymore. I was Jet now, a dangerous muscular fifteen year old. I'd saved people and stopped the Fire Nation countless times. I had rebuilt my life the way I wanted to live it. And no matter how hard they tried, the Fire Nation could never take that away from me. But I almost destroyed my life, and the lives of all of my Freedom Fighters, single-handedly.

It started on another raid of an occupied Earth Kingdom town. Completely normal day, and it seemed like nothing could go wrong. As was typical of such a town, we'd picked up several kids along the way who wanted to join us. I never gave them a second thought. They were only eight to ten year old boys. What could they possibly do to destroy me, the big bad fifteen-year-old Freedom Fighter? In a brilliant move that capitalized my stupidity, I brought them all to the tree house that night without questioning them first. I didn't consider that some of them might not like the way we lived. I was so elated from our victory that nothing could bring me down.

The dinner that night was amazing. Longshot had taken down many of the rooster hens that had escaped the town as it burned. We cooked them right there and ate them with stewed lychee nuts. It was absolutely perfect. I went to my room with a full stomach and a satisfied feeling. Then, the shouts came in the middle of the night.

"Over here!" I sat straight up in my corner. I'd always been a light sleeper, and these voices were like gunshots. Mostly because I'd heard them before. They were metallic, echoing, and fake sounding.

"Where?" another Fire Nation soldier demanded.

"The kid said they were up in the trees!"

"Well, I don't see anything!"

I didn't wait to hear any more, just grabbed my hook swords and swung down, landing on the ground in front of them. Before they could react, I rushed them. I shoved my left hook through one soldier's eyehole and tugged. He fell to the ground, hard. His rhino panicked and backed right over the guy. He didn't even have time to let out a shout. A second soldier fell, Longshot's arrow buried in his back. The rhinos were going absolutely crazy now. Two others mounted on rhinos approached us. I felt Smellerbee swing down beside me, and together we leapt into the fray.

She attacked left, I swung right. I was suddenly very happy that we'd gotten her those daggers, even if they were from the Fire Nation. I cut a soldier down as he started throwing fire at me. Smellerbee threw a dagger at the soldier to my left; it buried itself in his shoulder and he dropped. The rhino trampled him for good measure and then ran out the way it had come. I circled the soldier in front of me. He urged his rhino forward. I jumped right over the rhino's head and landed behind the soldier, on the rhino's back. Two swift chops to the back and he fell off too. I seized the reins and steered the rhino back to my Freedom Fighters.

The Duke had leapt on top of one soldier and started poking him in the eyes. The guy clearly wasn't a Firebender because he kept trying to throw The Duke off. Eventually The Duke leapt off the soldier, and that was when Pipsqueak clubbed the Fire Nation scum. Longshot was hitting everything within reach. Even Sneers was getting into the action, fighting hand to hand with some foot soldiers. I felt my heart swell with fierce pride. We truly WERE a force to be reckoned with. My eyes skimmed over the battle, and that was when I saw it. The rustle in the bushes, and large eyes that blinked before disappearing.

I knew that I had him as soon as he disappeared. He didn't know the forest the way I did. I jumped off the rhino and marched away, listening closely to the sounds around me. I finally picked him out – one of the new recruits from the day before, running as far away from me as he could possibly get. I grinned to myself.

He wasn't going to get very far.

I found him quivering near a tree. "What's up, kid?"

"Jet, I didn't mean to… I mean, the Fire Nation found me and… Jet, please, I didn't mean to, I swear!"

"Sure you didn't, kid. Just like the Fire Nation didn't mean to burn down my home!" I was shouting now, because I didn't care who heard. "Just like the Fire Nation didn't mean to burn down Longshot's home! Just like they didn't mean to make The Duke an orphan, or ruin Smellerbee's life!"

"But Jet, it's not the same thing. I didn't do it on purpose!"

"Neither did they," I sneered, my lip curling fiercely. "I gave you a second chance, you ungrateful sneak. And you betray me like this?"

"I didn't mean to, Jet!" The little boy looked up at me with big brown eyes. Well, I'd fallen for that once already, and I wasn't going to fall for it again.

"I don't really care," I snapped. He turned and ran, as far away from me as he could possibly get. I tightened my grip on my hook swords and followed.

He wasn't going to get very far.

**A/N: Oh Jet. -shakes head- As a side note, make sure to follow the chapter titles when reading the story. They indicate the passage of time. It has been six months since Jet found Smellerbee and The Duke, so it is possible that Longshot has since developed feelings on her. I figure that Jet would just address something like this point-blank in his own mind, since it is already fact.**

**Wow, reviews! That's pretty cool, since I only posted this at the prompting of a friend :) Thanks, guys!**

**Skyla: First reviewer! :D You have earned a special place in my heart for this.**

**JackieStarSister: I'm afraid I've never heard of that song. But I will definitely look into it now! As for the fight, I agree that thirty people taking on one kid is very unrealistic. I think that the idea was to demonstrate that even at a young age, Jet has the tendency to exaggerate his emotions/viewpoints of the world. Obviously I did not do this well enough. And yes, the question posed to Pipsqueak twice is indeed a typo. Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter Four: Three Months Before

.: Chapter 4: Three Months Before :.

I was outside in the dead of night. Since the fiasco with the traitor – _filthy boy_ – I ventured out less in the day. But things had gotten a little intense back at the tree house. Sneers still hadn't found our next target, and the Freedom Fighters had taken to sparring for fun. It annoyed me, that they could think about having FUN with the Fire Nation lurking around. Smells noticed how high-strung I was and made me take a walk.

I stared at the lights of the town below. I felt a strange longing in my heart – a longing for my old life, with plenty of food and parental love. It would be so easy to disappear. They wouldn't know until I was already far gone. I could set up a home, live out my life in peace, away from violence and fighting. I could change.

_Until the Fire Nation wrecks it again._ The thought crossed my mind before I could stop it, and my vision of hope was destroyed. _They will never stop hunting me. I can never find peace anywhere. No one will find peace until the Fire Nation is eradicated._

The shifting breeze blew a sound to my ears. I whipped out my hook swords and leapt on a nearby bush, where the noise originated from. It heard me approach and gave a muffled scream. I overshot the bush and the thing – a person on two legs – ran out from under the bush. _Fire Nation, _I shouted to myself. I ran after it, slowly realizing I was chasing a child. _They've sent another one to eliminate me._ I jumped again, landing directly in front of the little girl.

"Oh!" She gave a shout of surprise and fell backwards. I glared at her and she cowered, hiding her face in her hands.

"Who sent you?" I demanded quietly.

"What?" she mumbled. _She probably didn't get their name._

"Where's the weapon?" The girl dared to look into my eyes. I saw she had long black hair, and her eyes were a dark brown. "Where is it?"

"Mommy says that if I carry a weapon, I'll hurt myself."

"Don't play stupid. Where is it?" I snapped.

"Mommy says that stupid is a me—"

"SHUT UP!" I barked, putting my hook swords inches from her face. "Now, you are going to tell me who sent you and where your weapon is, or…" I broke off, amazed. The little girl was _crying. _I'd never seen a girl cry before; it just wasn't something my Freedom Fighters did too often. Thick tears rolled down her cheeks.

"You… are… so… mean!" she shouted between sobs. "Just like those mean boys in the village. They make fun of me because I'm a girl. And then I run away so I don't have to see them again and I find _you_. You're just like them! I hate you!"

_"I hate you!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. It had literally ripped from my mouth, a strange inhuman sound. It hurt to do that, but I wanted the pain. Pain was safer than sorrow. "I'm going to destroy your lives like you destroyed mine!"_

But I'm not like them. They're evil.

_She_ thinks I'm evil. Isn't that enough?

I stared at my swords for a long moment before I sheathed them behind my back. The girl wiped her tears on her arm and blinked up at me.

"I'm not mean," I retorted. _Why am I even talking to her? She's a nobody._

Like I was.

"Yes you are."

"I'm just careful. The Fire Nation's trying to find me."

She looked at me with caged respect in her eyes. "Really? Wow. My village leader says that anyone who fights against the Fire Nation is a hero. Are _you_ a hero?" The girl studied me for a moment, wisdom and trust and fear fighting within her. Trust won, and she stuck out her chubby six year old hand for me to shake. "I'm Rinpoche. But you can call me Rina."

I took it with a smile. "I'm Jet. Nice to meet you, Rina."

"So, _are_ you a hero?" Rina demanded.

"Yep. I fight against the Fire Nation, anyway," I said proudly. _Hero_. The word bounced around in my head a few times. _I guess I'm not worthless after all._

"Wow! I can't wait to tell my friends that I know a real hero! They're all going to want to meet you."

I stiffened. "You probably shouldn't talk about me. The Fire Nation could find me if you do."

"Oh." She seemed disappointed at my response, but her sunny disposition quickly broke through. "So, Jet, why is the Fire Nation so bad?"

_Are you kidding me?_ "You mean you don't know?"

"Know what?" _Oh, right._

"That the Fire Nation hurts everything."

"They can't hurt every—"

"They hurt my parents." Dead silence met these words. _Maybe I'm being too harsh… but she needs to know._

"I'm sorry," she whispered eventually. "That sounds bad. I can't imagine life without my mom and dad."

"You get used to it," I sighed, and took a seat next to her on the ground. "Besides, fighting the Fire Nation is a full time job. I don't have time for anyone else."

"That sounds really exciting – fighting the Fire Nation. I wish my brother did something interesting." Rina made a sour face. "But all he does is shut himself up in his room and practice _Earthbending_. He just likes to remind me that I can't do it."

"You don't need to Earthbend to fight. I can't Earthbend. None of my Freedom Fighters can bend."

A siren went off in my head as Rina stared at me in awe. _Careful, I'm saying too much!_

"You mean that you fight the Fire Nation and you can't even _bend_! You're even more amazing than I thought!" She smiled, as if she'd suddenly gotten an idea. "Hey, can I help?" I stared at her, the adorable six-year-old girl who had no idea what she'd just asked to do. Who didn't know that she would give up her life and her bed and her family to live in a strange place. I didn't have a choice but to leave when I was eight. _She won't be like me._

"How about we wait until you're older?" I suggested. "You wouldn't make really good friends with anyone anyway. They're all eleven."

Rina made a face. "Eleven year olds think they know everything," she agreed. "But I really want to help!" She made this weird little face that only small girls could do. Her eyes suddenly looked humongous and her lower lip trembled. Even I couldn't help it – I probably would have let her do anything… except join the Freedom Fighters.

"Why don't you be our spy?" I proposed randomly. "You let me know what's going on. You can definitely hear things in the village that we never could." My heart suddenly pounded with excitement at the thought. Sneers might have been good, but an inside connection was exactly what we needed to completely obliterate the Fire Nation forever. "Then, maybe once you're eleven, I'll let you help us fight."

"Oh, Jet, thank you so much!" Rina squealed. She threw her arms around me in a bear hug that caught me off guard and forced me to the ground. I smiled and helped her up. "Will you be my brother?"

I raised my eyebrows, gradually understanding the idea behind talking to younger kids. "You want a brother who lives in the trees and can only see you at night?"

"Yes!" she cried excitedly. I hauled myself to my feet and looked at the horizon; it was just beginning to lighten.

"Fine, then. But you'd better get home. I'm sure your parents are frantic right now." She wrapped her arms around my waist one last time before dashing off.

"Bye, Jet! See you tomorrow!"

As I watched her run off, I wasn't sure which made me happier: our new spy, or my new little sister.

**A/N: Awww, see? Jet made a friend! :) I think it's important that he remember good does exist in the world... for now. Poor guy can't seem to catch a break though, so we'll have to see how this pans out!**

**I'm moving back to college later this morning... Life will be hectic but I will continue to update! If not for Tanya, then for anyone else who reads. Life marches on!**


	6. Chapter Five: Two Months Before

.: Chapter 5: Two Months Before :.

"We've found our next target, Jet. The Fire Nation's just arrived."

"Where?" I asked, my mind making up various plans. If it was a far away village, we'd have to go in three week shifts. I'd stay round the clock, of course. The Freedom Fighters might be helping me with this war, but it was still my war. It was still my fight, my revenge, and my vendetta. They were all too young to understand. _Maybe Smellerbee and Longshot could rotate staying here while I'm gone… but then, Longshot was never one to give orders._

"Jet, they're here in the valley," Smellerbee told me tentatively.

I jumped to my feet, furious. "What? How _dare_ they come here!"

Smellerbee took a step back, surprised by the ferocity of my response. "Jet, what's the big deal? So we go get rid of the Fire Nation again. We've done it before!"

"No, Smellerbee, you don't understand." I buried my fingers in my hair. _They can't come here. They shouldn't have come here._ "This is too close to home. What if someone betrays us again?" My hands were shaking, and I had to sit down. I settled for an ungraceful flop onto the floor of my room. "They could… they could ruin everything!"

"Aw, Jet, that was a one-time thing. Everyone here's proved their loyalties to you a hundred times over. The boy learned his lesson. He won't be betraying you again, right?"

I nodded. "He learned his lesson. You're right, Smellerbee. I'm just being ridiculous." She smiled, satisfied, and left. I stayed on the floor, my head in my hands. _Of all the villages in the Earth Kingdom, they had to choose this one._

Night came quietly, and I slipped out of my room unnoticed. I dropped to the forest floor and started walking, not quite sure where I was headed. My feet led me down a path I'd traveled many times before, around our Fire Nation traps and down the hillside. I was out in the open now, my instincts sharper than ever. But at the same time, the twinkling lights of the town gave me hope. There were still people there. The Fire Nation hadn't destroyed their lives yet.

A soft noise came from a nearby hill. I whirled instinctively, my hook swords out. Then I saw her as she came up to me and ran into my arms.

"Jet! You came!" she giggled. I smiled at her.

"Of course I came, Rinpoche." She wrinkled her tiny nose at me.

"Jet, don't call me that."

"Fine," I laughed. "Rina, then." She nodded, satisfied. "So, Rina, has anything interesting happened since yesterday?"

"Yeah, but you won't like it very much." Rina looked up at me, and then tugged insistently on my sleeve. "Sit. It hurts to look at you. You're too tall." I laughed again – something that I hardly ever did in the tree house – and obeyed.

"So, Rina, what's happened?"

"Well, the Fire Nation's taken over the village. The _whole village_, Jet. You wouldn't believe it if you saw it. At first they were really mean, but after a couple of hours it wasn't so bad." I tensed, but I gave an encouraging nod to the little girl and she continued with her story. "One of them even gave me this little doll, Jet!" She held it out for me to examine. It was soft, a rag doll with long black hair and a green dress. "Her name is Mrs. Pretty."

"So, you don't… you don't mind them, then?" She shook her head. "They haven't bothered you at all?"

"No way, Jet. The one who gave me this doll said I reminded him of his little girl, back in the Fire Nation."

My blood ran cold. "The Fire Nation soldiers don't _have_ children, Rina." _They're not even human. There's nothing inside them, nothing at all! No person can just kill another in cold blood. It's impossible._

"Well obviously they do, because I reminded him of his—"

"He was _lying_!" I shouted. Rina pulled away and looked at me with her six year old eyes. "Rina, you can't trust anything they say. They're liars and murderers and very bad people. They will hurt you, and they will hurt your family."

"Jet, I don't understand. They wouldn't do that to me. They like me!" She sniffed and hugged her doll tighter. I glared at it as if it were the source of all the world's ills. I wanted to rip it apart. If it were anybody's but Rina's, I would have. This little girl was the only connection I had to other people, other human beings besides the Freedom Fighters. She was like my little sister, and I wasn't going to let anything hurt her.

"They might like you now, Rina," I said more calmly, "but someday the Fire Lord is going to tell them to do something that will hurt you. And he's their boss, so they'll have to listen."

"Why are people so mean, Jet?" Rina sniffled as she toyed with Mrs. Pretty's hair.

"People aren't mean, Rina. The Fire Nation Soldiers aren't people. They've had it too good for too long. And I'm here to make sure that you'll get your life back."

"Oh, Jet, thank you!" Rina sobbed. I felt relief in my bones when I realized that she finally understood. She hugged me and then stood up. "I have to go Jet." She ran away, back towards the village and the Fire Nation, dragging Mrs. Pretty by the arm.

_Evil doll_, I scowled to myself. _They're doing all they can to turn her against me. But I won't let that happen. I'm not going to let them hurt her. I'm going to free this valley from the Fire Nation._

_Whatever the cost._

I spent the next two months trying and failing to shake the Fire Nation from the valley. Longshot took down their soldiers when they ventured too close to the woods. Smellerbee infiltrated the village at night and robbed their stores. She took anything she could get her hands on: blasting jelly, food, arrows, armor. Slowly, we filled our warehouse with these Fire Nation "novelties." I spent my days plotting, trying to think of any possible way to remove the soldiers from the village without hurting Rina. At the same time, I was on edge. I knew the Freedom Fighters were getting antsy, and they wanted to free the village right then. But I couldn't risk failure. I had to sit, and wait and hope that people would accept my better judgment. They didn't.

It started at dinner, a month and three weeks after I met with Rina.

"Jet, what's taking so long?" The Duke whined. The entire table and surrounding treetops fell silent. I wasn't sure if it was out of shock or agreement.

"What are you talking about?"

"We're taking forever to get rid of the Fire Nation," The Duke explained. "Why don't we just go fight them already and get it over with?"

"Because I don't want anything happen to this village!" I retorted.

"Who cares? Like you said, Jet: everything has its price." I stiffened. If there was one thing that annoyed me more than the Fire Nation, it was my own words turned against me. "If this village burns to the ground, the valley will still be free. The Fire Nation will never come back." The Freedom Fighters cheered at The Duke's announcement, and I started panicking. I had to regain control of the situation.

"You don't know what you're talking about," I announced shakily.

"Don't you mean _you_ don't know what you're talking about?" The Duke shot back. "You're the one who said that, Jet, not me!"

"I am your _leader_!" I shouted, losing all patience. Over twenty shocked faces looked back at me as I slammed my fists on the table and got to my feet. "If I don't want to mobilize against the Fire Nation yet, then we will not mobilize."

"Jet, I was only saying that—"

"I don't _care_ what you were saying!" I roared, flipping the table over. The Freedom Fighters screamed and backed away. "You don't understand. This is a delicate situation. There is no room for failure. We can't lose this town. No one can get hurt. Everything has to go perfectly. If even one building burns, this entire mission is pointless!" The Duke stared at me, his eyes wide with shock. Smellerbee ran over to him and put a comforting arm around his shoulder.

"Jet, what are you doing? This is The Duke you're talking to! He was only trying to help and understand," she shouted at me. I blinked at her – Smellerbee _never_ yelled, much less at me. "I know you don't want to lose the village, Jet, but sometimes things happen. Mistakes are made. We can't guarantee anything."

"We will this time," I insisted. "Everything will be perfect. I am _not_ going to watch this village burn. Does anyone else have any questions?" The Freedom Fighters looked at me and shook their heads. I stormed away and took the first rope glider back to my room. I curled up in a corner and rested my head on my knees, breathing deeply.

_I won't do it. This village is going to survive the attack._

Smellerbee's words rang in my head. _We can't guarantee anything._

But I had already guaranteed Rina that I'd help. I said I wouldn't let the Fire Nation hurt her, or her family. I said everything would be okay.

_Why am I telling her this anyway? She doesn't care about me anymore. She's got that Fire Nation Soldier to care for her now, him and his stupid doll and his lies. I don't owe her anything._

_I can't let her go through what I went through. I can't let her watch her house burn to the ground, destroying everything she's ever loved._

"Jet?" Smellerbee called softly from outside the door.

"Go away," I answered gruffly. She didn't talk again, so I assumed she'd left. _Probably gone off to stand on the dam with Longshot._

_The dam. Now _there's_ an idea._

__**A/N: Rina-riffic surprise this chapter-I hope you all picked up on it! And what is going on in Jet's head? Sometimes I believe even he doesn't have any idea what he's thinking...**

**Thanks to Jackie for reviewing! As for what's coming? We shall see next chapter. It could be a game changer!**


	7. Chapter Six: Two Days Before

.: Chapter 6: Two Days Before :.

"Jet, we've found a Fire Nation camp." It was Smellerbee, with Longshot in tow. I stood up and they came to a screeching halt just inches in front of my face. "They're here in the woods, Jet." Her voice was breathless with excitement – she had probably run all the way here to tell me. I tried to smile, but my mind was focused on the plan to get rid of the Fire Nation. No one knew but me. I had to tell them soon. Rina was still saying she was fine, but I knew she was lying. She still carried that stupid "Mrs. Pretty" around. Maybe, once the Fire Nation was gone, we could throw it in the new river together.

"Are you sure we need to attack them, Smellerbee?" The words were out of my mouth before I could take them back, and the two friends exchanged a long glance.

"Jet, it's the _Fire Nation_. In our forest. With barrels of supplies. Who knows what's in them? It could be something important, like secret plans, or maps, or—"

"Or blasting jelly," I muttered to myself.

"What?" Smellerbee asked, confused.

"I said, let's go! We'll teach them to invade _our_ forest ever again." Smellerbee's face split into a wide grin. "Tell Sneers to sound the alarm. We're moving out." Before Smellerbee even had the chance to move, Sneers was sending out the gathering call. I had to smile at that – he really just heard everything.

"Pipsqueak, The Duke, come with us!" I hollered. They ran over eagerly. Longshot, Smellerbee, The Duke, Sneers, and myself stuck to the trees. Pipsqueak moved as quietly as possible along the ground. It was his job to stay in the bushes in case anyone tried to run, and I didn't even have to tell him that anymore. _Maybe I've underestimated him._

"Head to the left, Jet," Smellerbee told me, but she didn't need to. I could smell the smoke from their fire already. I turned around to see everyone, glancing at every face. Even if this little raid didn't matter to me, even if it was only their stuff I was after, I had to act like it did. "Sneers, stay here and keep a lookout. We need a distraction. When you get one, signal me. Two long, one short." He nodded and stayed put while the rest of us moved on.

Longshot and The Duke took up a post at the right side of the encampment, and I took up a post at the left. Smellerbee vanished in the trees right behind the camp, and I climbed higher up. From my new vantage point, I could see that Pipsqueak was hovering between Longshot and Smellerbee, hiding skillfully behind the bushes. _He's really getting the hang of this._

I waited, and waited, but no signal came. Finally, I sat down on the tree branch with a groan. This was clearly going to take all day – the sun was already sinking in the sky. _How long does it take for some hapless traveler to come crashing through the woods? _I snapped to myself. With a sigh, I pulled out my trusty twig from beneath my armor and shoved it between my teeth. It was a habit I'd formed some time ago, and it relaxed me when I was over tense. Not that I often _got _over-tense, but it also helped stave off boredom.

_Why did I even agree to do this?_ I sighed, frustrated. _It's not like anyone's going to come or—_

A bird sang. Two long whistles and then one short one. I carefully and quietly pulled myself to my feet on the branch. I unsheathed my hook swords and watched, listening intently. Suddenly, their voices were there.

"Hey, Sokka's Instincts, would you mind—"

"Okay, okay, I get it. Look guys, I'm tired too. But the important thing is that—" A stubborn looking teenage boy pushed through the foliage. He had his hair pretty much shaved off, with only enough for a very short pony tail remaining. His skin was very dark, even darker than mine, so he must have been born that way. He turned his back on the encampment – _Either he didn't see them or he's just overconfident _– and looked behind him. Two more people walked in, side by side.

One of them was a very friendly looking kid, only about twelve at the most. He had big gray eyes and a blue arrow on his head. The arrows reappeared on his hands, too. He stayed very close to the girl beside him, and I instantly understood why. She was stunningly pretty, seemed very nice, and she couldn't have been more than a year younger than me. She had these giant blue eyes, and very soft brown hair. _This should be interesting. I've never met a girl my own age._ Suddenly, I felt very self-conscious. _I hope I don't mess this up now._

"We're safe from the—" The teenager finally turned around to look behind him, eyes widening as he took in the encampment bristling with soldiers. "Fire… Nation." Then I saw their clothing – it looked very Water Tribe. Except for the younger boy; he was dressed in bright orange and yellow that I'd never seen before. It stood out clearly against the green foliage. _Rookie,_ I snorted. _But any enemy of the Fire Nation is a friend of mine._

Longshot looked over at me, waiting for the signal. His bow was strung, and with a movement of my hand, this would be over.

Or start; however you choose to look at it.

But I held back. _Maybe they can join us later on… I'll give them a chance to see what they can do. Besides, the soldiers aren't fully distracted yet._

"RUN!" the teenage boy yelled. I blinked in astonishment. They stumble into an encampment of Fire Nation soldiers, and their first reaction is to run? But that was what they were doing – they were even leaving their stuff behind! Still, they didn't get very far. A soldier wearing an eye patch leered at them and threw fire at the space behind them. It caught on fire quickly, and some of it spread to the teenager's left sleeve.

"Sokka, your shirt!" the bald boy shouted. The one called Sokka yelled. The girl next to him uncorked a water skin and it flowed out to her hands. I smiled – _at least one member of this trio is useful_. She doused the fire and then re corked the water skin, standing back to back with her traveling companions.

"If you let us pass, we promise not to hurt you," Sokka told the soldiers boldly. The girl looked over at him, surprised.

"What are you doing?" she hissed.

The boy shrugged haplessly. "Bluffing?"

I resisted the urge to slap him across the face. _Never bluff with the Fire Nation, you idiot!_

"You? Promise not to hurt us?"

I looked over towards Longshot. He was still waiting, patient and quiet as ever. I smiled and raised my hand. Longshot pulled back on his bow and the arrow hummed through the air. It connected with the soldier's back and he fell on his face into the dirt. _Right where you belong, scumbag. _The Fire Nation Soldiers relaxed slightly, lowering their weapons in confusion. _Mistake number two, boys,_ I smirked, and leapt down to a lower branch.

"Nice work, Sokka!" the boy shouted happily. "How'd you do that?"

"Uh, instinct?" Sokka shrugged, just as confused as his two friends.

"Look!" the girl called, pointing right up to where I stood. _Showtime._ I drew my swords and leapt off the back of the branch, catching the branch itself with the hooks. I smiled as I flew through the air, coming to a stop on the backs of two Fire Nation Soldiers. They hit the dust, and my eyes flickered to another pair of Soldiers right in front of me. I charged forward and flashed my hooks out. They caught the Soldiers by the ankles and flipped them head over heels. The swords pulled my body up, too, but I was prepared for this. I flipped gracefully in the air, landing in a perfect deep lunge.

"Down you go," I grinned. The travelers were all looking at me with mixed emotions. Sokka, the idiot, was staring at me in disbelief. The bald one looked at me like I was some kind of legend, come to life. The girl, the one I was hoping for the most from, was smiling and seemed very happy to see me. _Excellent._

A sudden pounding noise came from behind me. I waited, hardly daring to breathe, and then sprung. I hooked my opponent's wrist with my sword and spun around, sending him flying through the air. As for me, I landed right back where I started, ready for the next one that came running at me.

"They're in the trees!" a Soldier called. _Come on, The Duke, they just blew our cover!_ As usual, the boy didn't disappoint me. I watched as he dropped solidly onto the Soldier's head and spun his helmet around. The blinded Soldier stumbled away, and I smiled at The Duke. Three more Soldiers lost their swords to Longshot, who hung upside down from his branch while he shot at them. Sneers fell from a nearby tree branch, taking care of any Soldier who rushed him. They all ended up slung over tree branches, and I resisted the urge to laugh. Smellerbee came to land on the ground at my side. I gave her a reassuring smile and she ran off into the fray, most likely to help Longshot.

Sudden movement caught my eye and I turned around – the girl had started bending some serious water. She swept one Soldier off his feet. The boy next to her used air to attack, which caught my interest. _An Airbender, huh? Well, maybe only Sokka there is useless…_

Speaking of Sokka, I watched as a Soldier rushed him. He stood there like a complete idiot, hollering at the top of his lungs. He kept his boomerang held over his head, exposing his entire body. _Oh no you don't, Sokka. This fight is mine._ I ran towards both of them, digging the hooked ends of my swords into the ground. Right as the Soldier and Sokka were about to complete their collision course, I crashed into the Soldier's chest and he flew to the ground. Sokka's shoulders sagged, and he gave me a disappointed glare.

"Hey, he was mine!" Sokka protested. I simply shrugged.

"Gotta be quicker next time." I turned back towards the battle. A spearman raced towards me. I sent him spiraling around behind me and looked off to my right, where Pipsqueak had popped out of the bushes again. This time, he attacked the two Soldiers nearest him with his club. Satisfied that he was doing okay, I turned back to the spearman, just in time to block a stab at my throat. Both of my hooked swords were locked onto the spear and I felt my hands grow slippery.

_Come on, swords. Don't let me down now!_

They didn't. I sidestepped the attack completely, freeing one of my swords at the same time. I used it to hook the Soldier and throw him to the ground. The spear went flying and hit a stray soldier in the back of the head. It knocked him out cold, and as the guy slumped to the ground I saw Sokka standing behind him.

"Man!" He was clearly frustrated, but I didn't care. _If this guy is her boyfriend, she's just seen me wipe the floor with him._ I had to stop thinking again, because a second spearman rushed me. I caught the spear tip between my sword's grip and the gold crescent on it; I managed to redirect it away from my head, but the Soldier kept his grip on it. I glared at him, my mouth forming a savage grin. With a flourish, I wrapped my hooks around his spear point and thrust it into the ground.

_Best move for last,_ I smirked to myself, and dashed up the pole of the spear. The Soldier looked at me, shocked, and couldn't do anything before I was on top of him. I jumped, kicking him in the back of the head and sending him crashing to the ground. I landed awkwardly on the ground and stumbled forward a few steps, coming to a halt directly in front of the girl.

_Couldn't have planned it any better,_ I laughed. I knew my eyes were dancing. "Hey."

"Hi." She smiled up at me. Together, we turned to inspect the damage we'd done. Her little bald friend came rushing up to me, an awestruck look on his face.

"You just took out a whole army almost single-handed!" he gasped. I smiled and nodded in acknowledgement, basking in the glow of their praise.

Then the teenage jerk came and ruined it all. "Army? Pfft, there were only, like, twenty guys!" The girl glared at him and he stopped talking. I smiled down at her.

"I'm Jet, and these are my Freedom Fighters. Sneers…" I pointed to him, but didn't even remember when he'd stopped fighting. "Longshot…" He raised his head in what could pass for a nod. "Smellerbee…" She had her knife between her teeth. In each hand was a captured Fire Nation Soldier, and she even had one on her back. _Good old Smellerbee._ "The Duke and Pipsqueak." As usual, the two friends were standing together. The bald boy ran up to the pair of them and said something to The Duke.

"You think my name is funny?" Pipsqueak grumbled. I waited, wondering what would happen. _I've never known Pipsqueak to attack anyone who's not Fire Nation before…_ The boy said something else that I couldn't hear, and then Pipsqueak started roaring with laughter. He gave the kid a pat on the back, but Pipsqueak actually slammed him into the ground.

I winced, my mind whirling. _If Pipsqueak messes this up for me, I swear_— But the kid was looking up and laughing again. I could have sighed in relief. I left my Freedom Fighters and the others to clean up the mess. My shoulder hurt from the exertion of the fight, and I didn't think Smells would have let me do anything if I'd tried to. I sat down at the base of a tree trunk, breathing deeply.

_Just a little pulling of the old muscles, right? The important thing is that we've won. The Fire Nation won't be coming back into our forest. Now all we need to do is secure the village and—_

"Um… thanks for saving us, Jet." I smiled at her, and she looked completely flustered. "We were lucky you were there."

"I should be thanking you." She blushed at my compliment. "We were waiting to ambush those soldiers all morning – we just needed the right distraction. And then you guys stumbled in."

"I'm Katara, by the way," she told me. I nodded. "And that's Aang." She pointed to her bald friend.

"Nice to meet you, Katara." It was kind of hard to tell, but I think she liked the idea that I knew her name. _Good. She needs to trust me, because I don't think she'll like my plan._

"We were relying on instincts to get here," she added dryly, with an over-the-shoulder glare at her friend. I squinted, staying silent for a moment, before I saw it. _So Sokka's her brother? Even nicer…_

"You'll get yourself killed doing that," I informed her, glancing sideways at Sokka. He just walked away, but I could tell he was upset. _Better. No one feels comfortable here unless I want them to. I won't let the Fire Nation find us again, and I don't think this guy likes me very much._

"Hey, Jet!" The Duke called. Katara and I looked over to him. He was hanging over the edge of a barrel, his arm deep inside. The Duke pulled his arm out, revealing a finger coated with green goo. He took a sniff, but I already knew what it was. "These barrels are filled with blasting jelly!"

"That's a great score," I said mildly, but my heart was racing with excitement. _I can't believe this! With this blasting jelly, I can blow the dam and keep my promise to Rina. And her town won't be burned to the ground either. Can this day get any better?_

"And these boxes are filled with jelly candy!" Pipsqueak announced, holding up a large crate. _Yum._

"Also good. Let's not get those mixed up." The Freedom Fighters nodded and started loading up our loot wagon.

"We'll take the stuff back to the hideout," Pipsqueak boomed. The bald monk and his friend looked over at me, clearly interested.

"You guys have a hideout?"

"You wanna see it?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

Katara slid right up next to me, her eyes wide with excitement. "Yes, we want to see it!" she exclaimed. Her happiness made my smile deepen and my worry lines relax.

"Then let's go." I led them back the way we came in, but I almost lost it when I saw their giant bison. _Play it cool, Jet._ "Neat. He your ride or something?"

"Yes, Appa is our _ride_," Sokka snapped from his glowering position near the back of the group.

"Sokka, be nice!" Katara snapped back.

"It's cool," I assured her. "He's just upset because he didn't get a piece of the action. Maybe next time, hey Sokka?"

"Yeah. Sure," Sokka muttered rebelliously. We continued marching, this time with the group's bison at our side. Aang and Katara kept pace with me the entire time; Sokka didn't even try to get anywhere near me. When Sokka was in the right spot, I stopped.

"We're here."

As I expected, Sokka poured his pessimistic attitude on the entire group. "Where—there's nothing here!" _If you were anyone else, I'd teach you to watch your mouth__,_ I wanted to snarl, but this kid was Katara's brother. I had to at least pretend to like him.

"Hold this," I instructed, handing him a rope that led to our house.

"Why?" he demanded. "What's this do?" I looked up into the trees and suddenly Sokka was above my head. "Whoa!" he hollered, stuck in the leaves for a split second. _Insult to injury._

"Aang?" I asked politely, offering one to him and his monkey.

"I'll get up on my own," he assured me. The monkey jumped up and spread its wings, disappearing into the trees. Aang did some crazy Airbender thing, and soon he was gone, too. It got really quiet with only Katara and I down here. I tightened my grip on the rope and looked at her.

"Grab hold of me, Katara." I held out one hand and she took it gratefully. I spun her in until my arm was wrapped around her and her head was on my chest. I looked away into the trees, but I didn't miss the look of shock on her face, or the blush that she had the entire way up. _Smooth, Jet,_ I thought proudly. _A pat on the back for you._ The rope headed up through the hole and I leapt off it, only letting Katara go once we'd landed. A whoosh of air told me someone was flying by, and I turned to see Aang and Momo on a rope glider.

"Nice place you got here!" Aang called out as he whizzed past. I headed towards the bridge that connected this house to the other ones.

"It's beautiful up here!" Katara gasped, looking around in awe. I took a second look and realized that it was rather nice up in the trees. I guess I'd just gotten used to it, and all I could think of was its main purpose.

"It's beautiful," I admitted, "and more importantly, the Fire Nation can't find us." Suddenly, Smellerbee popped up and released her rope, landing elegantly on her two feet.

"They would love to find you. Wouldn't they, Jet?" Katara shot me a curious look and I could have kissed Smells for her perfect timing.

"It's not going to happen, Smellerbee." She was already gone, heading off to help unload the cart.

"Why does the Fire Nation want to find you?" Katara asked when we were alone again.

"I guess you could say I've been causing them a little trouble," I admitted humbly. Pipsqueak stomped up behind us, carrying a crate of Fire Nation loot.

"We've been ambushing their troops, cutting off their supply lines, and doing anything we can to mess with them," he told Katara proudly.

"One day," I finished, "we'll drive the Fire Nation out of here for good and free that town." _Without burning it to the ground._

She looked at me with shining eyes. "That's so brave!" I opened my mouth to reply, but Sokka started talking again.

"Yeah, nothing's braver than a guy in a tree house." His voice was dripping with sarcasm. _Let's hear what _you've_ done against the Fire Nation, tough guy._

"Don't pay any attention to my brother," Katara ordered. I took a deep breath and forced myself to stay calm.

"No problem. He probably had a rough day."

"So," she went on, forgetting about him completely, "you all live here?" We'd gotten to the part of the conversation that I'd both anticipated and dreaded. _Either she gets it, or she doesn't._

_Either I can tell her everything, or I can't._

"That's right," I sighed, my mouth completely dry. "Longshot over there? His town got burned down by the Fire Nation." She looked over at him sadly, but it wasn't quite the reaction I'd hoped for. "And we found The Duke trying to steal our food. I don't think he ever really had a home." She still wasn't looking angry, or like she wanted revenge.

Then she asked it, the big question.

"What about you?"

I stopped moving, and so did she. The group moved on, leaving me to think and remember.

_"Where's my daddy? What did you do to him?"_

_"You're dad's in there, kid. I don't think you'll ever see him again."_

"Fire Nation killed my parents." She gasped, horrified, but there was still no anger. "I was only eight years old. That day… changed me forever." _It gave me a reason to fight._

"Sokka and I lost our mother to the Fire Nation," Katara whispered. She sounded like she was about to cry, which kind of scared me. I'd never seen a girl cry, except Rina, but she was only six so that didn't really count. But I didn't let it show on my face, and I put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Katara." My voice sounded flat and lifeless, even to my own ears, but I couldn't let her hear how terrified I was. "Look, this is a little depressing, don't you think? Why don't we get some dinner? I'll race you!" She looked up and smiled at me, then tore across the bridge at my side. She stayed one step behind me, following my turns and twists through the trees until we both skidded to a halt at the table.

Smellerbee and Longshot had loaded up the table with the catches in our traps and lychee nuts. They'd even put lanterns up in the trees, a nice touch. _Probably spoils from our win today._ Katara sat down next to me, and unfortunately so did Sokka. After a few minutes of eating in silence, I stood on the table. Everyone's eyes were on me, including Sokka's glares. But I could almost ignore them, as long as no one else – especially Katara – was looking at me that way.

"Today, we struck another blow against the Fire Nation swine," I announced, a cup in my hand. Katara and Aang smiled up at me, much to Sokka's displeasure. _Watch and learn, doofus. This is how you lead a group._ "I got special joy from the look on one soldier's face when The Duke dropped down on his helmet and rode him like a wild hog monkey." The Duke took a victory lap on the table, clearly thrilled about his actions.

"Now, the Fire Nation thinks they don't have to worry about a couple of kids hiding in the trees." I raised my cup level with my eyes, hiding my smile. "Maybe they're right." Everyone booed in unison, and I set my face in an angry glare. "Or maybe… they are_ dead wrong_." Everyone cheered as I sat down between Katara and Sokka. Katara looked at me like I was some kind of hero. It felt nice.

"Hey, Jet," Katara smiled. "Nice speech."

"Thanks," I replied honestly. "By the way, I was really impressed with you and Aang. That was some great bending I saw out there today."

"Well, he's great," Katara murmured, averting her eyes to the floor. "He's the Avatar." I felt my heart skip several beats at that one. "I could use some more training." She finished it off with a blush that I didn't respond to.

"Avatar, huh? Very nice."

"Thanks, Jet," Aang beamed, and then I realized a major problem in my plan.

_This Avatar is the last Airbender. He was raised by monks. They're all about peace and brotherly love. They'd never let me blow up the dam. They'd try to stop me, and by the time they DID decide to act, it would be too late. There's no way I can tell them now._

"So," I started nonchalantly, "I might know a way that you and Aang can help in our struggle." Katara looked at me, eager as ever, and nodded in unison with Aang. _I've done it!_

Then Sokka opened his mouth and killed it. "Unfortunately," he retorted coldly, "we have to leave tonight." He stood and walked away from the table. I watched in horror as Katara and Aang's faces crumbled. _They're actually listening to this guy? Come on, I need them!_

"Sokka, you're kidding me!" I blurted out. "I… needed you on an important mission tomorrow!" Sokka stopped and slowly turned to face me. I smiled triumphantly. _Feeding the ego—works every time._

"What mission?"

"I've heard rumors that the Fire Nation might try to infiltrate the forest. We can't let them find us! They'd destroy everything we've worked for!"

"I don't know…" he returned hesitantly.

"Come on, Sokka! What harm could it do for us to stay a couple of days?" Aang and Katara pleaded.

As Sokka nodded, I raised my cup to him in salute. _No harm to anyone… unless they're Fire Nation._

__**A/N: She's heeeerrreee! So yes, most of the dialogue is lifted from the episode. I tried to throw in a few extra scenes to show how Jet feels about Katara, but in my head he's still mostly a military strategist. Even his emotions are held in check by his plans and schemes.**

**Skyla - That's okay! I definitely understand that life can be busy. Thanks for reading and reviewing though! It's awesome of you :)**

**JackieStar - Yeah, I think a lot of people really see Jet that way. And there's no denying that when Katara arrives, he is a motivated and unshaken hater of the Fire Nation. However, I always thought he must have had something happen to inspire that kind of anger. Losing his parents is clearly a devastating and indescribable loss for him, but I don't think it would have turned him into a killer of innocent people. To me, what really could have done it is watching someone he knows be "corrupted" by the Fire Nation. Slowly, he would come to realize (in his own mind) that even the people he wants to protect can be swayed to support their invaders. Then there would be no distinction to Jet between the "corrupted" and the Fire Nation. They become one and the same. He is trying to cling to the image of Rina he always had; at the same time, on principle he will not burn down villages because that is how the Fire Nation operates. However, Rina is now "beyond help" to Jet, and he sees the dam as an out to operating like the Fire Nation.**

**I guess the idea is that Rina choosing the Fire Nation over him (in his eyes) is the straw that breaks Jet-camel's back. And this response is lengthy. Whoops! Hope you can at least understand where I'm coming from :) Thanks for the review!**


	8. Chapter Seven: One Day Before

.: Chapter 7: One Day Before :.

"Sokka, Pipsqueak, Smellerbee, let's go!" I hollered. The two Freedom Fighters bounded up at my call, but Sokka still didn't appear. "Sokka!" I shouted.

"Sokka, if you don't hurry up, we're leaving without you!" Smellerbee snapped loudly. A loud _bang_ came from one of the nearby rooms and Sokka spilled out onto the balcony. He was trying to force his foot into a boot and it just didn't want to work.

"Wait, don't leave, I've almost… got it!" he shouted triumphantly, leaping to his booted feet to show off his handiwork. He smiled at me uncertainly, as if he wasn't sure that he should be nice to me just yet. I forced one in return. _He almost trusts me… I can't ruin it._

"Great, Sokka," I told him, turning away to look into the trees. "Just come out quicker next time. This patrol really is important." I took a rope and spiraled towards the ground, landing with a quiet thump. Smellerbee and Pipsqueak came gracefully with thumps of their own. Sokka's was slightly louder, but much improved from his ascent yesterday. _He didn't even yell… This really has to be important to him._

I told him where we were going and he took the lead. Pipsqueak followed him through the forest, guiding him at the turns he needed to take. Smellerbee fell back to my side, and I saw with a smile that she had tucked a dagger on her wrist.

"Careful, you could get hurt," I muttered. Sokka didn't turn around, and Smellerbee matched my volume.

"Why did you invite him at all?"

"He needs to see what we do. Maybe we'll get lucky and someone will show up. The longer we make him feel like a hero, the longer his sister will stay with us."

Smellerbee glanced at me, her eyes brown daggers. "What does Katara have to do with anything?"

"You know she can Waterbend. I have plans for her."

"Me too. They involve great heights, or some Firebenders, and maybe a few—"

"Smellerbee, she's not going to take Longshot away from you," I interrupted patiently. I had never seen Smells get jealous before, and it was a little amusing. _ As if Katara would go for Longshot anyways._

"She's going to take you away," she corrected quietly.

I looked at her, surprised. "I'm not going anywhere. And thanks for the compliment, Smells, but you're not really my type, so—"

"You don't even realize how different you are around her. What are you going to do when she leaves?"

"She isn't going to leave," I explained tolerantly. "She'll see how great it is, how great it feels to avenge her mother and her people. She'll want to stay."

"No. That's not how she works. She won't stay when that village burns, and you know it. She's going to leave you here. You can't get too close to her."

"I know what I'm doing," I snapped. "And we're not burning the village. How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Then how are we going to chase the Fire Nation out?" Smellerbee demanded. The only noise audible for a while was our feet as they crunched over various leaves.

"I'll tell you tonight. We're bringing the loot from our last raid over to the cliff. Take The Duke, Sneers, Pipsqueak, and Longshot with you. They can know what we're going to do." I stopped short suddenly, looking up into the trees. Sokka stood above me, his bright blue shirt clearly visible. _No one will look into the trees,_ I reassured myself. "Smells, go hang out with Pipsqueak. I'll take care of the new guy." She nodded and trotted away.

I unsheathed my hook swords and swung up through the branches, landing on one a few feet under Sokka. I cupped my hands around my mouth and let out a birdcall. Smellerbee and Pipsqueak responded and I settled down to wait.

"So, what are we doing this for?" Sokka hissed.

"We can't let anyone get too close to the tree house. The Fire Nation has tried to get rid of me before. Without me, the Freedom Fighters are leaderless." _Not to mention as good as homeless… no one but me can talk to Rina and find out the Fire Nation's plans. They'd burn down the forest before we could blink._

A loud _thunk_ cut into my thoughts. I looked up at Sokka to find him holding some weird knife. The end of it stuck deep into the tree, and he wrapped his hands delicately around the handle. Then, Sokka put his ear right up to it. "What are you doing?" I hissed.

"Shh… it amplifies vibrations," Sokka told me.

_Maybe he really isn't useless, _I thought to myself. _That's something we never thought of._

Out loud, I said, "Good trick."

"Nothing yet…" Sokka whispered. "Wait! Yes, someone's approaching."

_Fire Nation. I can feel it. No, it's deeper than that: I can sense it._

"How many?"

"I think there's just one."

_An assassin. He's got to be an assassin._

I cupped my hands and sent out the warning birdcall. Who knew whom the Fire Nation would send into the woods these days? Backup was a necessary precaution.

"Good work, Sokka." _You may have just saved my life._ "Ready your weapon." He obliged and pulled it from the tree trunk. I studied the path, my eyes narrowed. Then, at last, I saw him. The guy was ancient, clothed in Fire Nation garb, and hobbling along on a cane. _Sure. Play innocent. I fell for it once. I'm not doing it again._

"Wait!" Sokka muttered. "False alarm—he's just an old man."

_I can explain it to him later,_ I told myself. _Deal with the threat right now._ I pulled out my hook swords and jumped from the tree, landing on the forest floor in front of the Fire Nation civilian.

"What are you doing in our woods, you leech?" I snarled. My eyes roved him for a weapon, but there was none visible. _It'll come soon enough. None of the Fire Nation are blameless._

"Please, sir," he croaked. "I'm just a traveler."

_Just like that traitor was just a refugee._ I swung out with my sword and knocked him to the ground – right where all the Fire Nation belonged. His cane went flying, and I smiled. He wasn't going to go anywhere now. He did try to make a run for it, but crashed right into Pipsqueak. The Freedom Fighter pinned the old man to the ground with one foot.

"Do you like destroying towns?" I snapped. _Bet this guy was quite the Firebender in his day. Bet he knew the people who ruined my life. _"Do you like destroying families? _Do you_?"

"Oh, please," he whined. "Let me go—have mercy."

"Does the Fire Nation let people go? Does the Fire Nation have mercy?" _Did they have mercy on me? An eight year old? What about Rina?_ My voice was raw, and it hurt to even think about these things, but it felt good. _One less Fire Nation warrior in the world,_ I thought, and brought my leg back to kick him. When I went to move forward, however, something snagged my ankle and I stumbled. I whirled around, furious, to find Sokka standing there with his stupid Water Tribe knife.

"Jet, he's just an old man!" he protested.

"He's Fire Nation!" I retorted. "Search him!" I heard Smells and Pipsqueak moving behind me.

"But he's not hurting anyone!" Sokka tried again.

_No one is ever what they seem._

_Maybe I was wrong about you._ "Have you forgotten that the Fire Nation killed your mother? Remember why you fight!"

"We've got his stuff, Jet," Smells told me. I turned around and she was holding up a black bag. It made me uneasy that she hadn't found a knife, but maybe she was hiding it from Sokka. _Yes, that has to be it. I don't attack innocent people. No one from the Fire Nation is innocent. There had to be a knife._

"This doesn't feel right," Sokka mumbled.

"It's what has to be done," I snapped back. _For our safety… for our way of life._ "Now let's get out of here." I pushed past Sokka, who still wasn't moving. The Freedom Fighters fell in line, but the newbie still refused to move. "Come on, Sokka!" I shouted. Slowly, reluctantly, his footsteps caught up to us.

"Jet, why'd you do that?" he asked after about five minutes of walking. "He was just an innocent old man."

"No one from the Fire Nation is innocent. He was sent to remove me."

"Why would the Fire Nation waste an assassin on you?"

"Are you saying I'm not worthy of their attention?" I snarled. My wounded pride made my words seem sharper than I wanted. I tried to make my next speech soothing and reassuring. "Sokka, I brought you on this mission because I thought you would understand. I thought that you would know that the Fire Nation is evil. Why can't you see it? They're all bad. There is not one drop of good blood in that place, or their people."

"The civilians aren't the ones who fight the war, Jet. That's the soldiers. You shouldn't attack innocent people."

"He was Fire Nation!" I spat. "They are _all evil_. No one in the Fire Nation is innocent. They don't try to stop the war. They move in to occupied Earth Kingdom towns and disrupt the way of life. They lord their pretensions over us Earth subjects as if they're better than us. And when they've had their fun, they burn the place to the ground. Explain to me how anyone who does that is 'innocent'."

"The civilians don't burn down the cities," Sokka protested. I stopped and handed him a rope to grab. He waited for me to respond.

"They don't try to stop it, either," I told him quietly. He didn't meet my eyes as he flew upwards.

"Jet," Smellerbee hissed, moving to my side, "What do you want us to do?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Jet, Sokka was right. The guy didn't have anything. No knife, no assassination attempt, nothing."

"The fact that he is Fire Nation is enough," I insisted.

"For you and me and the Freedom Fighters, of course it is," Smells acknowledged. "But _she_ won't like it."

I didn't require any additional clarification. "Got any solutions?"

She smiled at me. "Knives of all kinds."

I heard them coming from a mile away. No one could quite maneuver in the trees the way us Freedom Fighters could. Katara pushed back the tent flap to my room and blushed. Aang filed in after her, looking slightly unsure of how to act. He had some ridiculous hat on his head. Sokka stormed right in and crossed his arms over his chest, glaring at me. I sighed and shifted to a sitting position in my hammock-bed. My makeshift table acted as a partition between us; I held one hand at my side, fingers wrapped nervously around Smells' knife.

"So… he told you?" I asked carefully. My voice was cool and aloof. "He did this really awesome trick with his knife where—"

"Why don't you skip to the part where you beat and robbed a harmless old man?" Sokka snapped. I glanced at Katara—she didn't need to say anything. The question glimmered in her eyes.

"Yeah. But he wasn't harmless," I told them. Sokka rolled his eyes in disgust.

"But he was—" Aang started, and then I realized what was going on here.

"Sokka—you told them what happened but you didn't mention the guy was _Fire Nation_?" I glared at him, fury pulsing in my veins. _He needs to stop twisting the truth around. Maybe I'll give him a lesson in that later._

"No," Katara answered dryly, "He _conveniently_ left that part out."

"Fine!" Sokka snapped. "But even if he was Fire Nation, he was a harmless civilian."

"He was an assassin, Sokka," I corrected him quietly. My mouth dry, I stuck the knife into my makeshift table. It was golden at the hilt, with a ring topping it. _Even if this knife wasn't his, he got what was coming to him. He would have come for me eventually._

Fire Nation scum.

"See?" I continued after a moment of astonished silence. "There's a compartment for poison in the knife." I pulled at the ring and a small vial of red liquid came out with it. "He was sent to eliminate me. You helped save my life, Sokka."

Katara relaxed and spoke with obvious relief. "I _knew_ there was an explanation."

"I didn't see any knife!" Sokka protested.

"That's because he was _concealing_ it," I spat through gritted teeth.

"See Sokka? I'm sure you just didn't notice the knife," Katara interjected calmly.

"There was no knife," Sokka insisted. "I'm going to the hut and packing my things." He stormed off and I looked to Katara. She was staring after Sokka, her face unreadable.

"Tell me you guys aren't leaving yet," I pleaded. My words were for both of them, but my eyes were trained on Katara. "I really need your help."

"What can we do?" Aang asked.

"The Fire Nation is planning on burning down our forest." I was amazed at how easily the lie came to my mind. "If you both use Waterbending to fill the reservoir, we could fight the fires. But if you leave now, they'll destroy the whole valley." Katara and Aang looked at each other for a long moment. Eventually, the two nodded in unison.

"Of course we'll stay, Jet," Katara smiled at me. I bowed my head with relief, which she must have taken for gratitude. She grabbed my hand and I looked up at her, surprised. "I won't let the Fire Nation destroy your home again."

"Now be extra quiet," I hissed to everyone. Sneers, Pipsqueak, The Duke, Smells, and Longshot blinked in understanding. "I can't have Katara and Aang and _especially_ Sokka finding out about this. Get the wagon. I'll fill you in on the way." Everyone grabbed a rope line and awaited the order. "Let's go," I commanded, and then I was sailing towards the ground.

Pipsqueak brought out the loaded wagon and we began our march through woods and moonlight.

"So, what's going on, Jet?" Pipsqueak rumbled.

"Yeah. Are we going to get rid of the Fire Nation now?" The Duke chirruped.

"Tomorrow," I began quietly, "I'm going to have Aang and Katara fill up the reservoir with water. While they're doing that, I'll help you guys set everything up at the base of the dam."

"Set what up, Jet?" Smells whispered.

"The blasting jelly," I answered. We broke out of the cover of the forest, onto the Cliffside. I didn't speak for a while, eyes roving the hills below us. I'd blown off Rina to come here tonight.

_Her and her stupid Mrs. Pretty and her new rules and new ideas,_ I snapped to myself. Suddenly she'd become different, constantly worrying about a curfew and talking about Fire Nation Soldiers like they were actual human beings with feelings. _She's with them now. I can't bring her back._ Maybe it was just my imagination, but I thought I saw a small figure walking slowly back towards the town. I shut my eyes and turned away.

"Now listen," I commanded. "You are not to blow the dam until I give the signal." I looked over at Longshot – it would be his flaming arrow that set the bomb off. His face was blank. "If the reservoir isn't full, the Fire Nation troops could survive." The Duke jumped off the wagon and stepped forward.

"But what about the people in the town—won't they get wiped out too?"

_You were singing a different tune a few days ago._ I came up to him and put an arm on his shoulder. _Maybe it's just because we're doing it on purpose._

"Look, Duke, that's the price of ridding this area of the Fire Nation." _And the Earth subjects who can't even be bothered to fight back. They're just as bad. _"Now don't blow the dam until I give the signal, got it?" I glanced over at Longshot again, and this time he nodded. "Smells, I—"

"Where do you think _you're_ going, ponytail?" Smells sneered from a point off to my left. I turned to look and found her with a knife at Sokka's throat. Pipsqueak had him by the ponytail.

_Not my lucky night._

"Sokka," I smiled warmly. "I'm glad you decided to join us." Smellerbee and Pipsqueak forced Sokka on his knees in front of me. Inside, I was swimming with anxiety. _I can't let Katara find out…_

"I heard your plan to destroy the Earth Kingdom town."

I glared at him. "Our plan is to rid the valley of the Fire Nation."

"There are people living there, Jet—mothers and fathers and children!"

_You think I don't know that? _"We can't win without making some sacrifices!" I retorted, then took a deep breath and forced a smile. _Relax. He won't go along if I keep yelling at him_.

He pointed at me like he was accusing me of doing something wrong. "You lied to Aang and Katara about the forest fire!"

"Because they don't understand the demands of war," I replied smoothly. "Not like you and I do."

Sokka continued to glare at me. "I do understand. I understand that there's nothing you won't do to get what you want."

"I was hoping you'd have an open mind," I sighed. Actually, I didn't really care, but it would have been nice to have another ally. "But I can see you've made your choice." I looked over at Smells and Pipsqueak and then lunged at Sokka. Before he could blink I had his wrist pinned with my hook swords. They forced his other hand behind his back, but I kept my grip on him for a few more seconds while I glared into his eyes. "I can't let you warn Katara and Aang," I added. I dropped his hand and they forced it behind his back as well. "Take him for a walk—a long walk."

"You can't do this!" Sokka called over his shoulder. I looked away from him, back to the twinkling lights of the town. Where Rina was, back with Mrs. Pretty, back to being corrupted.

"Cheer up, Sokka. We're going to win a great victory against the Fire Nation today." I heard Smellerbee and Pipsqueak forcing him through the trees and sighed. _Cheer up. We're going to win a great victory against the Fire Nation today…_

**__A/N: And here we are! Hopefully Jet doesn't seem as crazy now, for the way he treated that old man. Perhaps a better word would be "misguided"? Or even "betrayed"? He's just been through a lot! And I'm not saying that because he's one of my favorite characters... honest... *shifty eyes***

**Anyways, I hope you enjoy the update! Classes started today and it was a little rough. But we all do what we must to survive (something I learned from Jet)!**


	9. Chapter Eight

.: Chapter 8 :.

"Ready to go, Jet?" Katara's voice called through the tent flap. I jerked out of my doze and sat up, rubbing my eyes. The tent flap pushed back beneath my hand and I walked up to stand next to her.

"Always ready." She smiled up at me, and then Aang zoomed up by her side.

"Where are we going, Jet?" he asked eagerly.

"We're talking a walk," I told them casually. Aang removed Momo from his shoulder and leapt down through the trees. I took Katara's hand and then grabbed a rope. I had no doubts that she could do it on her own, but it made her happy to go down this way. I couldn't say that I minded it, either. She smelled like flowers… _Focus._

We touched down gently and I released her. Aang was already waiting, bouncing off the trees with excitement.

"Is anyone else coming?" Katara asked.

"No, just us. I really need your help," I added with a grin. I led the way and they trailed behind me, our footsteps crunching on the leaves.

"So where's Smellerbee and Pipsqueak?" Aang asked. "I haven't seen them at all this morning, and I wanted to ask Smellerbee how she does this thing with her daggers…"

"They're… out." I led them out of the foliage and onto the banks of the river. Aang fell behind a few steps to look for rocks and Katara caught up with me.

"Jet," she sighed, "I'm sorry about how Sokka's been acting."

"No worries," I reassured her. "He already apologized."

"Really?" Aang called from behind us. Katara stopped walking and shared a long look with Aang. "Sokka apologized?" _Apparently not something he does too often…_

"Yeah," I answered nonchalantly. "I was surprised too. I got the sense that maybe you talked to him or something," I added, directing the phrase at Katara.

"Yeah, I did," she admitted faintly.

"I guess something you said got through to him. Anyway, he went out on a scouting mission with Pipsqueak and Smellerbee." Too late, I realized that I'd already said Pipsqueak and Smellerbee were 'out.' _Easy, Jet. They believe everything I say. They won't question it._

"I'm glad he cooled off," Katara sighed. I released a breath I hadn't known that I was holding. "He's so stubborn sometimes." Behind us I heard Aang stop moving, and then a giant whoosh of air. I turned around and watched as Aang floated gently back to the ground.

"All right, we're here," I announced. "Underground water's trying to escape through these vents. I need you guys to help it along." Katara looked down at her feet, her face a mask of uncertainty.

"I've never used bending on water I can't see. I don't know…" she muttered. I walked over to stand behind her and put two hands on her shoulders.

"Katara," I smiled, "you can do this."

"What about me?" Aang asked.

I smiled at him, too. "I know the Avatar can do this."

They nodded in unison and took up positions at opposite ends of the geyser. The pair moved their arms up and down, up and down, up and down in a rhythmic motion until the water came up. They still didn't stop, drawing it up higher and higher until… they stepped towards the river and moved the water with their arms. It arced into the air and flowed into the river. _That's what we need here—a pair of strong benders._

"Yes!" I cheered. "Good job! This river empties into the reservoir—a few more geysers and it'll be full." _And the Fire Nation won't stand a chance._

"Look!" Aang called. "There's another steam vent." They walked towards it and I turned away.

"Okay," I shouted. "You two keep it up—I'll go check on things at the reservoir." I started walking away, but froze at what Katara said next.

"When we're done we'll meet you over there."

"Actually…" I replied. "Probably better if you meet me back at the hideout when you're done." I continued walking away, listening as they got another geyser to spill into the river. I thought about heading straight to the reservoir, but my feet carried me to the hills. I moved on, lost in thought.

_After all this time, we're so close. I'm so close. We can wipe out the Fire Nation with one fell swoop. I can get rid of that ridiculous doll. And if Rina… if Rina survives, she'll be different. Without that doll, without the Fire Nation, she'll be different. She can come help me, and talk to the kids, and do things that I could never do. She'll be different._

"Jet?" an incredulous voice called. It made me stiffen, and the voice called to me again. "Jet, what are you doing here?"

"Nothing, Rina," I answered gruffly. "Go home."

"I thought you didn't walk in the daytime," she muttered.

"I don't."

"But you are right now—"

"Go home, Rina."

"Jet, why didn't you come to see me yesterday? You got me in trouble for no reason. Sergeant Kuzon said he'd take Mrs. Pretty away—"

"Sergeant Kuzon," I snapped, "has the right idea. Who the heck is Sergeant Kuzon anyway?"

"He's my friend. He just transferred into our town from the Fire Nation."

"You're _friends_ with a Fire Nation Soldier?" I still couldn't bring myself to face her.

"Yes. They're nicer than you'd think. At least Kuzon is. He has a son, you know. A little boy named Onzu. He lives next door to me. Hey Jet, can Onzu come meet you?"

"No."

"Why not?" She was whining now. I squeezed my eyes shut, but I couldn't help it. She sounded just like the old man in the woods. She sounded like a Fire Nation civilian. But I could change her—I could bring her back. "Jet, he's my friend! He would never—"

"No, he can't come. And you can't come either."

"Why?" she gasped.

"Because I hate you," I breathed quietly, the lie burning in my throat. "You don't understand everything, but you think you do. You think that you can just make friends with the Fire Nation? Let me tell you something—they're all evil. But you listen to them and follow their rules and hold onto their dolls, when all they're doing is bribing you for obedience! You don't even TRY to change anything!"

"You… hate me?"

"Yes, I do," I finished. "Now go away. I don't want to see your Fire Nation worshipping face or that horrible doll ever again. Go play with Onzu and Kuzon. Apparently they're nicer than I am." I turned and walked away, but I couldn't shut my ears to her wails. They followed me as I twisted and turned through the woods, haunting my every step.

_She's Fire Nation right now, just like the rest of them. They'll all be crying soon._

I came out on the edge of the cliff again, where Longshot and The Duke were waiting for me.

"Is everything down there?" I asked.

"Sure thing, Jet," The Duke answered.

"Then go help everyone set up, The Duke," I commanded. He nodded and disappeared into the forest. "Longshot, are you ready?" He nodded and indicated one arrow in his quiver. It was all I needed to see. "Then get set up." I looked down at the Freedom Fighters who were clambering all over the wagon, getting it ready. "It'll be ready soon. Where's Smellerbee and Pipsqueak?"

Longshot shrugged, but his eyes glistened with worry. "I don't know."

"They'll be fine, Longshot," I reassured him, putting a hand on his shoulder. He looked at me for a long moment, eyes unreadable, and then walked into the forest. I climbed a nearby tree and settled into the nook, observing the blasting jelly as it got set up. Four of my Freedom Fighters were arranging the barrels—I couldn't pick out The Duke, but he was small enough to have been any of them.

_Where are Smells and Pipsqueak?_ I wondered to myself. _They should be back by now—Sokka couldn't have caused them this much trouble._ My mind wandered away from my missing comrades, focusing on the dam again. _I'm so close to fixing everything. And what can't be fixed will be removed._

"You did a great job today, Aang."

I sat straight up in my tree, alarm coursing through me. _What is SHE doing here?_

"Thanks, Katara," Aang returned.

_I thought I told them to meet me at the tree house._

"You're going to be a great Waterbender one day," she finished, coming out of the nearby woods. I watched in horror as they froze at the top of the cliff, a few feet away from me. Katara was studying the activity at the dam, her eyes squinting in concentration. Finally, she looked to Aang in confusion.

"What are they doing?" she asked.

"Hey, those are the red barrels he got from the Fire Nation," Aang announced.

"Why would they need blasting jelly?" Katara wondered. He gasped suddenly, his eyes widening with comprehension.

"Because Jet's going to blow up the dam."

"What? No!" Katara protested, shaking her head in alarm. "That would destroy the town. Jet wouldn't do that!"

_They're Fire Nation, _I growled to myself. I waited, hoping they would understand. Hoping she would understand. But Aang pulled out his staff and wings sprouted at either end of it.

"I've got to stop him," he announced, and started running for the edge of the cliff. I stood up in my tree and withdrew my hook swords. _Time for some damage control._ In the recesses of my mind as I soared through the air, I heard Katara whisper, "Jet wouldn't do that."

I flew straight behind Aang and took the glider with one sword. He was leaning right over the edge and I saw him use Airbending to regain his balance before I hit the ground.

"Yes, I would," I announced. I could feel Katara's eyes blazing into my back.

"Jet," she gasped, "why?"

The hurt sound of her voice stung more than anything else. _She needs to understand. If she understands, she'll help me._

"Katara, you would too if you just stopped to think. Think about what the Fire Nation did to your mother. We can't let them to that to anyone else, ever again." I turned to face her, but her entire face was closed to me now.

"This isn't the answer!" she protested.

"I want you to understand me, Katara," I pleaded. She bit her lip, and I could see she didn't want it to be true. "I thought your brother would understand, but—"

"Where's Sokka?" Katara demanded. She wouldn't even look at me as the tears fell from her eyes. I reached out a hand and touched her cheek. _If she just looks at me, I know she'll understand._

"Katara," I whispered. She bowed her head for a moment.

_Look at me._

She finally did, and with a loud shout something slammed into my stomach. I couldn't breathe as I flew through the air. Aang's glider was ripped from my hand and landed on the ground several feet away. I landed on the ground, too, hard. My back was on fire, but I scrambled to my feet.

"I need to get to the dam." Even in my shock, I heard what Aang said. Everything slowed down. Aang was dashing for his glider, and I was too far away to stop him. Then I looked at my hook swords and I remembered something from a time long past. A man swirling these same swords through the air, faster and faster until one was only a shimmer in the sun. I smiled and linked my two swords together by the hooks.

I lashed out towards the glider and pinned it just as Aang stretched out to grab it. The swords responded to my tug, yanking the glider back towards me. It soared neatly into my hand and I put it behind my back.

"You're not going anywhere without your glider," I informed him fiercely, swinging the swords at him. They twirled and spun, never making contact with his body. I didn't ever want to hurt him, just get him to back off, which he did, soaring into a nearby tree. I saw him do it and realized that I couldn't let him get away. He could just take the glider from the trees.

_If I just knock him out for a few minutes, I can do everything._

"I'm not going to fight you, Jet," Aang shouted.

"You'll have to if you want your glider back," I hollered hoarsely, hooking myself up into the trees. I saw the flashes of orange directly ahead of me, and Katara's blue kimono trailing us below. I ran faster, catching up with Aang. I didn't give him a chance to react, leaping at him with my hook swords. He wound his hands around each other and I ducked, feeling the balls of air sail neatly over my head. I rushed him again, but Aang's wrists crossed over his head and he sent me flying backwards with air again. My body slammed into a tree trunk. My ears were ringing and my vision was pounding but I leapt to my feet.

I tried linking my hook swords again but he just dodged and attacked with air again. I ducked into a deep lunge, the air whistling through my hair.

_Just have to get close enough to…_ He leapt down a tree branch and I followed him, swinging and leaping. This was MY neck of the woods. There was no way he could win. I landed with a thud on the same branch as him and charged at him again, but he just circled away. Suddenly I felt like my years of fighting and training were completely worthless. He was just too fast.

_No,_ I snapped to myself. _You have a job to do. Finish it._ In the split second of my thoughts, I missed Aang's motion again. A huge gust of air breezed past me. I fought it for a moment before I lost all control and blew backwards. I felt the glider fall from my back. Aang soared through the air, struggling to reach it before it hit the ground. I leapt down after him, speeding faster and faster until my foot connected with his side. He slammed into a tree trunk and slid the rest of the way to the ground, landing next to his glider. It looked a little worse for the wear at the moment.

I ignored the sound of gentle water behind me. We were standing at a tributary that flew into the larger river, and to my left was a clear view of the dam. _Finish Aang, then get to the dam._ He was still moving, and I moved in for the final blow.

Something slammed into my stomach. I shifted my focus from Aang to the area around me, registering that my stomach was soaking wet. Then I saw her—Katara glaring at me with fury, spinning water around between her hands and letting it fly. It slammed into my stomach again and again and again, each time forcing me backwards. I tried to block it with my hook swords but it was no use, and before I knew how far I'd come, my back was up against a tree. Katara put her hands right beside her mouth and blew gently. I heard a cracking sound that reminded me of the winter, when the ice broke on the river. This time, however, the ice crept towards me, every drop of water freezing solid. I felt the water in my clothes harden, sealing me against the tree. Encasing me in ice.

I struggled to pull away, my head still free of the icy prison for the moment. When I realized it was useless, I looked back at the dam. I could still see it. _Noises carry in the woods. They'll hear me._

"Why, Jet?" Katara whispered, her voice filled with pain. "I can't believe I trusted you. You lied to me—you're sick and I trusted you!" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Aang twitch.

_I can explain to her again later. Come on, guys, where are you?_

Then I heard it. The signal to let me know everything was all set. It was two short bird sounds. The two benders looked back out towards the dam, where it was coming from. I gave my order, ten short bird sounds. Four low, one high. Four high, one low.

"What are you doing?" Katara demanded. She looked at me, her eyes wide.

"You're too late," I announced proudly.

"No!" she gasped. Her face was horrorstruck. Aang opened his glider and took off running, but even I could see that it was full of holes. Inevitably, he crashed to the ground. Katara ignored me and ran over to him.

"Sokka's still out there—he's our only chance," Aang moaned.

"Come on, Sokka," Katara pleaded to her invisible—and probably missing—brother. "I'm sorry I ever doubted you. Please." I looked out to the dam, waiting for Longshot to pull through for me.

_Come on, Longshot. This valley needs you right now._

Then I saw it—the lighted arrow flying impossibly high into the air. It soared neatly to the abandoned set up at the base of the dam.

"No," Katara whispered.

The dam went up in a glorious explosion, smoke and fire consuming its very core. I stared as the center of my life's work for the past two months gushed out in an enormous wave. It swept towards the town, towards the Fire Nation and the traitors to the Earth Kingdom. The wave devoured the town greedily, swallowing houses and barrels and carts of cabbages. Then it was over. The valley was free.

"Sokka didn't make it in time," Aang mumbled.

"All those people," Katara gasped. She turned back to me, her face furious. "Jet, you monster!" She sounded like she was about to cry.

I had to make her understand.

"This was a victory, Katara. Remember that. The Fire Nation is gone and this valley will be safe."

_Rina will be safe._

"It will be safe—without you."

I jerked my head up, horrified. _YOU? Smellerbee and Pipsqueak were supposed to get you out of my way!_ I could only stare, helpless, as Sokka, Momo, and Appa appeared at the edge of the cliff. The doofus was driving the bison while the monkey watched.

"Sokka!" Katara cried with joy.

"I warned the villagers of your plan, just in time," Sokka announced.

"_What_?" I cried. _This can't be happening. Everything I've worked for!_

"At first they didn't believe me," he went on. He sounded very full of himself. "The Fire Nation soldiers assumed I was a spy. But one man vouched for me—the old man _you_ attacked. He urged them to trust me, and we got everyone out in time."

_The old man betrayed me. I let him live, when I could of… when I could have destroyed him. I let Sokka live, and he turned on me, too. Is there anyone I can trust anymore?_

"Sokka, you fool!" I spat. "We could've freed this valley!"

_We could have freed Rina._

"Who would be free?" he demanded. "Everyone would be dead."

_Rina would have made it. Without her doll—she would have made it._

"You traitor!" I shouted, struggling to break through the ice.

"No, Jet," Sokka contradicted me quietly. "You became the traitor when you stopped protecting innocent people." Katara and Aang turned away from me.

_They can't leave me here!_ "Katara," I begged. "Please—help me."

She froze for a moment. "Goodbye, Jet." Aang helped her onto Appa's back, and she wouldn't even look at me anymore. Sokka looked down his nose at me one last time before turning away.

"Yip yip," he sniffed, and then they were gone. I stared forlornly after them.

_They'll come back. They'll understand. They can't just leave me here._

But they did. They weren't like my Freedom Fighters. They left and never looked back. The sun set on me and I waited. I couldn't go back to the tree house yet. Not in defeat. I never lost. And knowing the Fire Nation was still alive, after I'd promised everyone they'd be gone… I didn't know how to handle it. So I waited.

**A/N: Boom. Countdown, over. See you on the other side!**

**Thanks for reviewing, Jackie! :)**


	10. Chapter Nine: One Day After

.: Chapter 9: One Day After :.

The sun rose, and as it peaked in the sky the last of the ice melted. I pulled away from the tree, completely dry and utterly empty. I had failed. I never failed. But I had. Somehow, those three had stopped me.

_How can I call myself a warrior if I can't stop three teenagers?_

I trudged through the woods, away from the tributary. The leaves swirled in the air around me, but I couldn't have cared less. The Fire Nation still lurked in that valley. They still poisoned the minds of kids like Rina. They still _lived_.

_I failed my parents._

I let my swords fall and I stood, rooted to the ground.

_How could I have failed my parents?_

I saw it again—my father disappearing into the house, chasing after my mother, the house collapsing… Tears blurred my vision and I blinked them away. Slowly, I brought my hands in front of my eyes. I flexed them—they still worked. My toes still bent, my arms still circled, my legs still moved… so _why_ couldn't I stop them? Why could they stop me? What had I done wrong?

I pushed further on, growing closer and closer to the camp. A rope fluttered down to hang in front of me. I grabbed onto it and it pulled me up through the trees. I leapt off automatically, landing right in front of Smellerbee.

"Jet, you're okay."

"Yeah," I answered hollowly.

"Where were you? You missed the celebration! I tried to get them to wait for you but—"

"I'm not going to a pointless celebration."

"It's not pointless, Jet. You saved the valley. Your plan _worked_."

"No it didn't."

"What are you talking about? We all saw the wave—well, I didn't see it, but I heard about it. Was it really higher than the trees?"

"No," I responded. "The town was empty."

"The town was… What?" she gasped.

"Yeah," I continued, my voice getting louder. "The town was empty! And d'you know _why_, Smellerbee? Because the _idiot_ you were supposed to take care of got away, and warned everyone. _Why didn't you come and tell me_?" The entire tree house was dead silent now. I felt the eyes digging into my back.

_Now they all know I'm a failure…_

"Jet, I couldn't—"

"Do you _know_ what you've done to me? You pushed the only people I ever loved away from me." Her eyes narrowed at that, like she was hurt by my words. But I was beyond the point of caring. "Aang was incredible. He was the _Avatar._ Do you understand what he could have done for us? And Sokka would have come around eventually! He was a really great warrior, and once he saw what the Fire Nation did, he would have been second in fighting only to _me_. And Katara… she could Waterbend. And she made me happy. And you drove her away! What is your problem?"

"I didn't drive them away," she protested. Somewhere, back in my mind, I knew she was right. That only made me angrier. _Am I _always_ wrong?_

"Yes, you did. You messed everything up. Because of you, this whole operation was ruined. I became a failure. I failed my parents because _you_ couldn't do the simplest of tasks." Smellerbee drew back as though I'd slapped her.

"Why are you blaming _me_, Jet?" she snapped. "I stuck by you and did my best. What about the others? What did I ever do to deserve all the blame?" Smellerbee turned and ran away into the trees.

"You weren't me," I sighed to myself. The Freedom Fighters all returned to their tasks, and I returned to my room. I sat there and stared at the roof, my mind completely blank except for one thought.

_No one will ever get away from me again._

__**A/N: I'm back! The March For Life was fun and DC was great, but as a side effect I am totally exhausted. Wheeeeeee!**


	11. Chapter Ten: Three Weeks After

.: Chapter 10: Three Weeks After :.

"Jet, you've got to do something," Smellerbee urged. I didn't remember when she'd started talking to me again, but she was the only one who still did. "We're all hungry. You're not organizing anything, and you're not fighting anything. Some of the younger ones ran off yesterday, and no one's seen them again. That's everybody we've got."

"Who's left?" I asked, though we both knew that I didn't really care.

"Pipsqueak, The Duke, Longshot, me and Sneers. Although," she added as an afterthought, "Sneers is starting to get pretty restless, too. He wants to know why we're not fighting the Fire Nation anymore. I think he wants to get out of here."

"Tell him he can go," I mumbled, rolling over in my hammock.

"What?"

"He can go. If he wants action and an exciting life, he shouldn't be hanging around here."

"Are you sure?"

"Whatever."

* * *

><p>"Jet, come out here quick!" It had been almost six weeks since Katara left. Since my plan failed. Since I had proven myself worthless. Slowly, one by one, my Freedom Fighters had left. They'd gone to do some actual fighting. At first they'd waited, and hoped, and even bet on when I would return. I knew the truth: I would never return. I didn't have the heart for it anymore.<p>

I sat up in my hammock with a groan. Smellerbee and I had patched things up, but I knew Longshot would never forgive me. She was the only reason he hung around anymore. I didn't really care; who stayed and who left didn't affect me the way it once would have. Failures didn't need supporters to stand around and watch them mess up.

"Jet!" Smellerbee called again. I could tell by the anxiety in her voice that something was wrong. _Maybe Sneers finally left. He's been itching to travel for days._ No sooner had I thought that then I smelled what was scaring her: burning wood. I leapt out of my hammock and pushed through my doorway. Smells was standing there, her hand pointing directly towards the rising sun.

Smoke twirled lazily through the air, winding its way into the clouds.

"They're burning the forest," I hissed, shutting my eyes to the sight. _Thanks again, Sokka._

"What're we going to do, Jet? We can't possibly get back to the river in time – it's too dry and we'd never make it back with enough water to do anything."

"We're going to leave," I announced.

"What?" Smellerbee cried. "But this is… and I…"

I looked at her with patient understanding. "I know it's your home, Smells, but we can always make a new home. You said it yourself: we'd never make it back with enough water to do anything."

"Alright," she sighed. Tears glistened in her eyes but never left them. "I'll go tell everyone." Smellerbee turned to walk away, but I flung out my arm and blocked her path.

"No. I'll do it." She smiled, and I put my hand to my lips. Long, short, long… the signal for danger. The Freedom Fighters were slow to respond, perhaps because I hadn't called them like that in a very long time. But they all came: The Duke, Pipsqueak, Sneers, and even Longshot, although he glowered at me the entire time and stuck close to Smellerbee. The entire group looked worse for the wear—they were all much skinnier than I remembered. I wasn't sure if The Duke was getting enough to drink, either.

"Hey," I began awkwardly.

"What's going on, Jet?" The Duke asked. He gave me a reassuring smile and I nodded. They still believed in me.

_Of course they do. They're the ones who stayed._

"The Fire Nation's burning down our forest. Apparently they got sick of trying to find us. We have to leave."

"Should we get anything, Jet?" Pipsqueak rumbled.

"If you have something that's important to you, get it. But we don't have a lot of time." The group looked at each other but did not move.

"We've got everything important right here," Smellerbee smiled.

"Then let's go." We grabbed ropes and moved quickly towards the ground. Once I heard everyone land I took off running, away from the smoke. The wind in my hair was something I hadn't felt in a while, and the sun seemed to make everything brighter. Maybe, in the end, it was the rush of adrenaline, knowing that my life depended on my speed. Either way, I could feel the warmth creeping back. I could feel my old self, my old life, my old instincts, slowly regaining control. It felt good to be back.

Even in my newly energized state, it was impossible to outrun the smoke. The Freedom Fighters caught it first, and I heard them coughing. Then I heard the roaring of flames, and the smoke wrapped itself around me. My eyes started watering but I pressed on, coughing and hacking through the woods. The air became supercharged with heat until it was almost impossible to bear. The memories gnawed at the edges of my consciousness, threatening to pull me under again, pull me back to another time when flames consumed everything I'd known and…

_No. I'm going to get them out. The Fire Nation took my parents. They're not getting my friends, and they're certainly not getting me._

Then we were outside of the forest and picking up even more speed, the six of us sprinting through the grass. After a few hills separated us from our home, we turned as one to watch. The flames were eating through the tops of the trees, licking hungrily to the sky. Even from this distance, ashes breezed through the air and landed on my clothes. _Maybe that one is the tree house,_ I sighed mildly. _Shouldn't I be more upset about this?_

_But that place hasn't been home to me for a long time. Not since she left._

"Jet!" Smellerbee gasped. "Where's Sneers?"

"Sneers…" I muttered, glancing at the group assembled before me. Silently, I started counting: _One, two, three, four, five, me… and Sneers makes seven._ But only six of us stood on top of the hill. "Where's Sneers?" The question ate away at me like fire burning through paper, destroying my ballooning happiness. I'd lost Sneers. The Fire Nation had gotten one of my friends. I'd failed again.

"I'll go find him, Jet," Pipsqueak volunteered.

"I'll go, too," The Duke added, leaping onto Pipsqueak's shoulders. "We can't just leave him in there!"

"The Duke, Sneers was the best scout we've ever had. He knew the woods as well as I did," I reassured him insincerely, helping him off Pipsqueak's shoulders. "He probably made it out another way." I hoped the words weren't as hollow as I imagined they were. I knew it was too late to go back for Sneers now.

And no one ever made it.

"Well then, where are we going to go?" Smellerbee asked quietly. I think she understood what had probably happened to Sneers.

"I think that we should go find Katara's dad. Didn't she say he was fighting in the war?" The Duke questioned me. I turned my head away from him, towards the ground.

"I don't know," I answered.

"Well, I know what The Duke is talking about," Pipsqueak rumbled. "And I think he's right."

"I understand if that's what you guys want to do," I acknowledged, "but I just can't. It… I can't face him."

"Then we'll come with you, Jet," The Duke announced, his voice strong. "It's okay; we can fight the Fire Nation with you, too."

"No, if you want to see some actual fighting, you should probably go to find Hakoda." My voice was quiet, but I knew they could all hear me. "You too, Pipsqueak. Take care of The Duke, okay? Go see the world for a while."

"But Jet, I—"

"Don't worry about it, The Duke. I'll be expecting a full report when you get back." I held out my hand and he took it with a smile, but I could sense the sadness behind it.

"See you around, Jet." Then the shouts came, and we scattered. Smellerbee and Longshot followed me west, over the hills and towards the wilderness. We ran and ran until we couldn't hear the Fire Nation anymore. I slowed down to a walk. Smellerbee lingered at my right side, and Longshot stayed next to her.

"What did you mean when you said we wouldn't be fighting the Fire Nation, Jet?" Smells whispered.

"I think that part of my life is over for now. I already feel better the further away I get from those woods. Maybe someday we'll fight again, but I want to go someplace new."

"We're refugees," Smellerbee reminded me. "How about Ba Sing Se?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Thanks to Jackie for reviewing! :) The week's been crazy in recovery mode, but I have come out in one piece!**


	12. Chapter Eleven: Two Months After

.: Chapter 11: Two Months After :.

"Next!" The wrinkled old lady snapped. The room was crowded with refugees. It was hot, and smelly. The woman at the desk had a very mean disposition—like she was born and bred in the Fire Nation.

_Easy, Jet._

I just hated this place.

"Passport?" she barked.

"I don't think I need—"

"No passport, no ticket!" the lady spat.

"You don't understand—"

"I understand one thing: no passport, no ticket!"

"Couldn't you just—"

"NO!" she hollered. "If I give _you_ a free ticket, I have to give _everyone_ a free ticket. Come back when you have a passport." I knew a dismissal when I heard one. Dejected, I exited the line and returned to where Longshot and Smellerbee sat, waiting. They could read the disappointment in my face.

"She wouldn't give you any?" Smellerbee gasped.

"No. But that's okay. We don't need passports… anyway," I finished, watching Smells disappear into the crowd. I smiled and sat down next to Longshot. "I can't believe she's going to steal from refugees. I was just going to sneak on the boat, but—"

"Stop." Longshot's voice was cold, hard, and bitter. It sent chills up my spine, and I wasn't afraid of much. "I'm never going to forgive you. You know it, and I know it, so stop trying."

"Longshot, I—"

"I don't want to hear it. Even if you were upset or lonely or depressed, you shouldn't have said what you said to her. You've always used her as a sword sharpener, Jet. Don't deny it, but don't continue doing it. I'm only here for Smellerbee. The day she decides to ditch you is the day you should start sleeping with one eye open." He half smiled to himself. "You know how good of a shot I am."

It was the most I'd ever heard Longshot say. But I knew he meant it. And I stopped talking.

When Smells returned, she found us sitting in silence.

"Hey. Any luck?"

She gave a feral grin. "Refugees really need to guard their belongings a little better." From her right hand dangled three tickets, as well as two bags of supplies.

"Nice score," I smiled. "Where'd you find them?"

"Some couple—they were off talking with…" Her voice trailed off for a moment, and she flicked her eyes towards me. "With people. And they turned their backs on their stuff. I guess that means no travel for them, but we've got our ticket out of here."

"So, what do you think of him?" I asked Smellerbee nonchalantly. We were both holding up to the Ferry really well, which was a plus. People were puking all over this ship, although that might have been due to food poisoning. The food here was practically lethal, and now word had gotten around that the captain was feeding us his leftovers. I'd never been so hungry, unwilling to eat, and angry at once in my life.

It was doing weird things to my stomach.

"Why would I have an opinion of him?" Smells wondered.

"Do you think we can trust him?"

"Jet, don't tell me—" she started.

"I just want to get us some real food," I protested. My stomach rumbled in agreement. "And if you can steal from fellow refugees, I can steal from greedy captains," I added with a smile. She blushed, embarrassed, and studied her feet.

"He's fine," she agreed eventually. I looked back towards the pair for a final evaluation. The old man was worthless, but next to him stood a teenage boy with a bowl in his hand. An angry red scar covered his left eye and ear. His black, short hair revealed golden eyes and a furious glare. He was muscular, body probably conditioned by months on the run from the Fire Nation. In short, he was perfect for what I had in mind.

I drew closer in time to hear him mutter, "I'm tired of living like this." He leaned onto the rail. I adjusted the straw in my mouth and made my move.

"Aren't we all?" I asked. He turned to look at me and I gave a sly grin. "My name's Jet, and these are my Freedom Fighters: Smellerbee and Longshot." I didn't even have to turn around to know they were there. Instead, I leaned on the railing of the ferry next to him.

"Hey," Smellerbee added as a greeting.

"Hello," he returned quietly, looking out over the lake.

I moved closer—couldn't risk the wrong ears hearing this. "Here's the deal. I hear the Captain's eating like a king, while us refugees have to feed off his scraps. Doesn't seem fair, does it?"

"What kind of king is he eating like?" the old man demanded eagerly. He was practically drooling. _Well I've captured his attention._

"The fat, happy kind," I answered. _Great. Now he really _is_ drooling. _"You want to help us "liberate" some food?"

I waited, anxious, as he stared into his bowl of gruel for a long moment. Then he threw it over the rail and turned to me. I heard the distinct plop! of wood hitting water. "I'm in."

That night, I met the kid out on the lower deck. We nodded in silent agreement, and I turned to Smellerbee.

"Keep watch," I hissed. "Longshot," I continued, "can you cover our trail?" He looked at me for a long moment, as if I needed a reminder that he hated my guts, before walking calmly away. "So, do you know…" My voice trailed off as the kid headed up a set of stairs and around a corner. He led us straight to the kitchen. We paused for a moment, staring in the window for confirmation. I decided to take charge for a change and forced the lock on the door open. Smellerbee took up a post at the side of the door.

We burst into the kitchen and started taking everything we could find. It was more food than I'd seen in a couple of days. It was in better condition than anything I'd eaten in a couple of days, too. _Maybe the rumors _are_ true,_ I mused, using my swords to "liberate" some birds into my sack. I turned around and watched as the kid whipped out a pair of broadswords and stacked eight bowls together, securing them with some ribbon.

_Broadswords, huh? _Very _nice._

The two of us turned towards the doorway, our sacks filled, as Smells hissed "Guards coming!" Now all three of us were running stealthily towards the balcony, where Longshot had fired an arrow and rope. We sent the sacks of food down first and then got ourselves out after. Smellerbee was the first, and then the kid, and then me. Longshot pulled the arrow out after I landed safely, and we disappeared into the shadows of the ship.

"Awesome job," I congratulated everyone. I even made a point of nodding to Longshot, but he didn't respond. "Hey," I added, turning towards our new comrade. Smellerbee glanced over at Longshot, and the two of them melted into the darkness. He just looked at me, waiting. "You know, as soon as I saw your scar, I knew exactly who you were." He glanced at me, uncertainty and anxiety shining in his eyes. "You're an outcast, like me. And us outcasts have to stick together. We have to watch each other's backs, because no one else will."

He looked away, out towards the rocky cliffs of the nearby Earth Kingdom shore. The great wall of Ba Sing Se loomed behind them. "I've realized lately that being on your own isn't always the best path," he announced grimly.

_I can't believe I've been missing this,_ I thought to myself as I doled out the food the next afternoon. _These people actually appreciate me. They don't expect anything from me. I'm just a hero to them._

_Did I really sacrifice people like them to the Fire Nation?_

_ Would they still love me if they knew the truth? If they knew I was a failure?_

_ If they knew I couldn't save everyone?_

I gave the final bowl to a little old lady before turning back to my new group. To my surprise, Longshot and Smellerbee were deep in conversation, which meant Smellerbee was talking to herself, and the old man looked somewhat embarrassed of himself. I headed over to break the ice after dissolving my frown.

"From what I heard, people eat like this every night in Ba Sing Se. I can't wait to set my eyes on that giant wall," I announced eagerly.

"It is a magnificent sight," the old man told me respectfully.

"So you've been there before?" I asked.

"Once," he muttered, "when I was a different man." He looked away, reeking of regret and sorrow. _What does he have to regret?_

"I've done some things in my past that I'm not proud of," I admitted calmly. "But that's why I'm going to Ba Sing Se, for a new beginning. A second chance."

"That's very noble of you. I believe people can change their lives if they want to. I believe in second chances." The two looked at each other, and once again I got the feeling that I was missing something.

_What are they hiding?_

My train of thought was interrupted as the ship slowly ground to a halt. The man and the kid stood up. Smellerbee and Longshot came back and rejoined us as we were herded off the ship like rooster-cattle. Hundreds of us, hundreds of refugees, poured inside the Ferry Landing. We followed our friends right through to the line of the ticket gate. I hung back with the Freedom Fighters as they mixed words with the Customs Woman.

"So, Mr. Lee," she growled, "and Mr.… umm… Mushy, is it?"

"It's pronounced Moo-shee," the old man corrected.

The woman glared at him from her desk. "You telling me how to do my job?" she snapped.

"Uh, no no no," Mushi grinned hastily. He took a few steps towards her. "But may I just say that you're like a flower in bloom, your beauty intoxicating."

She smiled back at him, obviously charmed. "You're pretty easy on the eyes yourself, handsome." I was tempted to look at Smellerbee to see the expression on her face, but this moment was priceless. She was actually making the gesture of a puma-lion claw! "Raorrr. Welcome to Ba Sing Se." The woman stamped their papers and pushed them towards the pair.

Lee snatched them up, clearly embarrassed. "I'm gonna forget I saw that." They marched off towards the line for the transport system, and we took a step forward in line.

"I think Lee would make a good Freedom Fighter," I told Smells and Longshot. "He's just trying to find his way in the world, like us."

"You don't know anything about him, Jet," Smells protested.

"I know he didn't get that scar from a Waterbender," I reminded her.

"Besides," she continued as though I hadn't spoken, "I thought we were going straight now."

"We are," I shrugged. "And the new Freedom Fighters could use a guy like Lee. What do you think, Longshot?" I asked him out of habit, but curiosity overcame me and I turned to look at him. He shot me a look that said if I invited Lee in, Longshot would quit then and there, not to mention destroy us with the information he knew. "I can respect that."

We stepped forward in line to the ticket counter. I pushed the tickets forward and kept my eyes on the floor.

"Jet, Smellerbee, and Longshot, are these right?" the lady growled.

"Yeah," I answered bluntly.

"Are they even real names?" she baited me, the stamp hovering over our tickets.

"They're our names," I answered. She frowned, but stamped the tickets anyway. I wasn't quite sure what answer she'd wanted, and I gathered the tickets before she could change her mind. Me and my Freedom Fighters headed to the debarkation point for Ba Sing Se, where I found Lee and Mushi.

"So," I began, sitting down next to Lee, "you guys got plans once you're inside the city?"

I almost had an answer out of them when this crazy tea guy started shouting "Get your hot tea here! Finest tea in Ba Sing Se!"

Mushi stuck out his arm. "Oh!" he called. "Jasmine, please." The tea guy poured it into Mushi's bowl and he took a sip with an excited expression on his face. Before I knew it, the tea was out of his mouth and on the ground. "BLAUGH! Ugh. Coldest tea in Ba Sing Se is more like it," he muttered. "What a disgrace!"

_This guy is just too distracting,_ I sighed to myself. "Hey, can I talk to you for a second?" Lee didn't even seem to notice the tea incident, but he got up when I asked with a reluctant sigh. I led him to a point away from our friends and Mr. Mushi.

"You and I have a much better chance of making it in the city if we stick together," I told him. "You want to join the Freedom Fighters?"

"Thanks," Lee muttered, "but I don't think you want me in your gang."

_With those sword skills? Is he kidding?_

"Come on," I pleaded. "We made a great team looting that Captain's food. Think of all the good we could do for those refugees."

"I said no," Lee answered, returning to his place by his Uncle.

"Have it your way," I shrugged, but I couldn't keep the shock out of my voice.

_Why wouldn't he want to join… Wait a minute!_ I focused in harder on Mr. Mushi and his bowl of tea. He'd spat it out on the floor only moments ago because it was cold, hadn't he? Well, now it was steaming hot and he looked like the happiest man in the Physical World. _There's no way that tea just heated itself. But he couldn't have started a Fire unless… he's a Firebender!_

Lee turned to look at me. I tried to wipe the glare of hostile suspicion off my face but it was too late. I turned and walked away. I didn't need to see anything else.

_The Fire Nation's infiltrated Ba Sing Se. But the Freedom Fighters and I will bring them down._

_**A/N: So, there are only a few chapters left. Dear Jet, enjoy it while it lasts! As the saying goes, "Seasons change. People don't."**_


	13. Chapter Twelve: Ten Weeks After

.: Chapter 12: Ten Weeks After :.

The sun poured into the open alleyway as I strolled through the streets, enjoying my new life. I'd considered getting rid of my old armor for a while, but it held way too many memories. Besides, it was comfortable.

_Too bad Smellerbee and Longshot didn't stay with me, _I sighed to myself. _I bet they'd love it here. There's so much freedom, and I don't even get weird looks anymore._

Something tumbled across the ground, caught by a stray breeze. I picked up the scroll of paper and studied the image printed on it. It was a missing pet ad, and the animal seemed kind of familiar. I looked at it for a while longer, but only fuzzy memories came to my mind. There was no contact information on it, either, except an address.

_What if these people know me from before?_ I asked myself. _Don't be silly. I'm not going to their house. If I see them, like this picture of their bison, I should know them. _With this thought, I shoved the slip of paper into my back pocket, right below my hook swords, and continued walking. I wasn't in any particular rush – the sky was a clear blue and this section of the city was deserted.

_Maybe I can go to that new tea shop; didn't someone say they had the best tea in… Don't I know her?_ I paused for a second, observing a girl about my age. She had dark skin and a dark brown braid that hung down the back of her blue dress. Her hands were occupied with something on the wall; I took a closer look and found she was putting up another one of the posters I had picked up off the ground.

"Katara," I called, her name springing to my memory like it had broken free of a restraint. With that name came back some unhappy memories of me, frozen to a tree as I risked the lives of innocent people. _But I've put that behind me,_ I reassured myself. She turned around with a startled gasp and a slight blush, and I smiled at her. "I think I can help you."

Her look of surprise switched to a look of outrage in a split second. I saw her arms move up in a giant sweeping motion and the water from a nearby stream rose into the air.

"Katara, I've changed!" I shouted, but the water surrounded me and threw me into a nearby alleyway. I just barely had time to get up before she reappeared, a sphere of water swirling between her hands.

"Tell it to some other girl, Jet!" she retorted, freezing the ball into ice spikes and hurling them at me. I spun around quickly, off balance, and used my hook swords to knock them down.

"I don't want to fight you!" I announced. "I'm here to help." To prove it to her, I raised my hands above my head and let my swords clatter to the ground. She took a step towards me and stopped. I could see the indecision on her face.

_I'll just show her the picture I found… the picture of Appa._

I reached behind my back to get the picture, and before I could blink, she'd pinned me to the wall with a second flurry of ice blades. I waited, passive, as she stared at me. Then her friends came rushing up behind her, including Sokka. Once upon a time, his name would have made my blood boil—but it didn't. And that was proof, to me and the world, that I really had changed. Aang was there, too, and some girl I didn't know. She was shorter than Katara and Sokka, with black hair and a fighting look about her.

"Katara, what is it?" Sokka demanded.

She glared at me. "Jet's back." They all stared at me in surprise, and I realized with a prickle of discomfort that their new companion was blind. _But I saw her run in here…_ "We can't trust anything Jet says."

"But we don't even know why he's here," Sokka pointed out. I blinked in astonishment. _I guess Sokka's changed, too._

"I don't care why he's here," Katara retorted in a hostile tone. "Whatever the reason is, it can't be good."

_Wait a minute, that's not fair! _"I'm here to help you find Appa!" I interjected. I opened my right hand and the paper I'd found that morning unrolled in my hand.

Aang turned to look at Katara eagerly. "Katara, we have to give him a chance."

_And I have to take mine._ "I swear, I've changed," I added earnestly. "I was a troubled person, and I let my anger get out of control. But I don't even have the gang now! I've put all that behind me."

"You're lying!" Katara shook her head bitterly. I stared at her for a long moment. _Why won't you trust me?_ Then her little friend pushed right past her. She put her hands on the wall near my head, and everyone was quiet for a minute.

"He's not lying," she said eventually, and I recognized the accent and her tone. It was Earth Kingdom. _They've gotten around._

"How can you tell?" Sokka asked.

"I can feel his breathing and heart beat," she announced. "When people lie, there is a physical reaction. He's telling the truth." The three of them turned to Katara, while I mused over the strange abilities of this blind little girl. _Maybe she's not so helpless after all._

"Katara, we don't have any leads," Aang pleaded. "If Jet says he can take us to Appa, we have to check it out."

Katara's shoulders sagged in resignation. "All right," she sighed. She turned back to me, her finger pointed towards my head accusingly and her tone vehement. "But we're not letting you out of our sight!" She stabbed her finger at me again and then turned away, making her way out of the alley.

"Uhhh… a little help here?" I asked politely.

"Oh, right," Aang responded sheepishly. He moved his hand in a circular motion and the ice picks melted away. The other three stood around awkwardly for a moment, and then I led them out of the alleyway after Katara.

"Come on, guys!" I called back, and then turned to face their newest member. "And… uh…"

"Toph," she supplied in a monotone.

"Right," I returned before leading them down the road.

"So… where are we going?" Aang asked after a few moments. We'd caught up with Katara, who had stopped at the mouth of the alleyway, looking lost. She didn't look very happy to be with me at all.

"I have a job near this warehouse. I was walking home one day, and I heard these guys talking about something that sounds a lot like Appa. It's right… here." I found the door to the warehouse and pushed the door open. I felt my spirits sink immediately—the place was empty except for a few sacks and some rope. "This is the place I heard about," I confirmed.

"There's nothing here," Aang cried out unhappily.

"If this is a trap..." Katara growled, facing me and preparing to attack.

"I told you, I work nearby!" I reminded her. "Two guys were talking about some giant furry creature they had. I figured it must be Appa."

"He was here!" Toph called. I turned to stare at her, and found her bent over a clump of white fur. The others rushed over to her side, and Aang petted the clump of fur sadly.

"We missed him," he muttered. I heard a sweeping noise and found its source: an old man with white hair was sweeping up behind Aang.

"They took that big thing yesterday," he croaked. Aang straightened in surprise. "Shipped him out to some island," the man continued. "About time. I've been cleaning up fur and various, uh, leavings all day."

"What island?" Aang called as the man started walking away. "Where's Appa?"

"Foreman said some rich royal type on Whale Tail Island bought him up, guess for a good zoo or such." He paused for a moment. "Though the meat would be good."

"We've got to get to Whale Tail Island," Aang ordered. He turned to Sokka, who already had his nose stuck in a map. "Where's Whale Tail Island?"

"Far," Sokka informed him meekly. "Very far." He laid the map of the world on the ground to show us. "Here it is. It's near the South Pole—almost all the way back home." We kneeled around the map, and my head was buzzing. _Maybe they'll let me come… I wouldn't have to fight. Finding Appa is a noble cause, after all._

"Aang," Katara said gently, "It'll take us weeks just to get to the tip of the Earth Kingdom. And then we'll need to find a boat to get to the island."

Aang stood, and I knew he was furious and excited at the same time. I'd felt that before, too. "I don't care," he snapped. "We have a chance to find Appa. We have to try."

"Must be nice to visit an island," the janitor mused as he passed by again. "I haven't had a vacation in years."

"Don't you have some more hair to clean up?" Katara snapped irritably.

"Shuffle on, I get you," the janitor mumbled. "No more need for old sweepy."

Katara turned back to Aang, completely ignoring the old man's ramblings. "You're right Aang." She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder… Like a mom would to her son. _She can't like him._ "Right now, our first concern has to be finding Appa. We can come back when we have him."

_Why are they here at all?_

"All right," Sokka sighed. "Let's get moving."

"I'll come with you," I offered.

"We don't need your help," Katara shook her head firmly.

"Why won't you trust me?" I asked her forlornly. Sokka and Aang started walking away and I trailed after them, not waiting for her permission.

"Gee, I wonder!" she called from behind me. After a moment of silence, I heard Toph speak.

"Was this guy your BOYFRIEND or something?" I smiled despite myself.

"What? No!"

"I can tell you're lyyying…" Toph taunted, and my smile deepened. _I like this girl._

"Come ON, guys!" Sokka called irritably from the head. "This journey's long enough already. We don't need to make it longer!" The two girls scampered up to us and squished their way to our sides. I kept pace with them the entire time we walked through the sunlit streets. Katara didn't protest.

_Is she afraid of being called my ex-girlfriend again?_

"We can take the train out to the wall," Sokka was saying, "but then we'll have to walk."

"Don't worry! On the way back, we'll be flying!" Aang put in cheerfully.

Toph extended her arms in an exaggerated gesture of relief. "We're finally leaving Ba Sing Se. Worst city EVER!"

_I'm not so sure about that…_

"Jet!" a voice hollered. _Katara again…_ I muttered to myself, rolling my eyes. I ignored her and kept walking.

"I thought you said you didn't have your gang anymore," she continued accusingly. I turned around, confused.

"I don't," I told her again. _Where would she get an idea like…_ Two arms wrapped themselves around my waist and held me tight. I looked down to find Smellerbee clinging to me. She seemed very happy to see me, which I didn't understand at all. _How did she get here? What's going on?_

"We were so worried!" Smellerbee was saying. "How did you get away from the Dai Li?"

"The Dai Li!" Katara gasped.

"I don't know what she's talking about!" I protested. The entire gang stopped and came closer to us.

"He got arrested by the Dai Li a couple weeks ago," Smellerbee told them. "We saw them drag him away."

_Smells, I finally get them to trust me and you're going around telling lies like this?_ "Why would I be arrested?" I asked everyone. "I've been living peacefully in the city."

Toph knelt down between us and we waited expectantly. "This doesn't make any sense," she announced. "They're BOTH telling the truth."

"That's impossible," Katara snorted. _I'm with you, okay?_

"No, it's not," Sokka interrupted. "Toph can't tell who's lying because they BOTH think they're telling the truth." He pointed an accusing finger at me. "Jet's been brainwashed!"

_What? _"That's crazy!" I protested. "It can't be." They all circled in around me, and I backed away on instinct. Suddenly their friendly faces were cast into diabolical, slanting shadows. "Stay away from me," I commanded. They ignored me and moved closer.

"I told you guys, there is nothing wrong with me!" I snapped. The group simply stood over me in my chair and ignored me. I was seated in my apartment as they tried to figure out what was amiss… as if I didn't already know the answer.

"The Dai Li must have sent Jet to mislead us, and that janitor was part of their plot too," Katara decided. They all looked at me with suspicion, and I knew that no matter what I said they would never believe me.

"I bet they have Appa here in the city. Maybe he's in the same place they took Jet." Aang turned to look at me. "Where did they take you?" I stared resolutely at the floor.

"Nowhere," I insisted. "I… I don't know what you're talking about." _I've been living peacefully in the city. Haven't I? I know I have! No one can brainwash me. I'm too smart to fall for that._

"We need to find a way to jog his real memories," Aang announced. I resisted the urge to glare at him. _I don't have a memory problem!_

"Maybe Katara could kiss him," Sokka suggested slyly. "That should bring something back."

She flushed, annoyed. "Maybe you should kiss him, Sokka."

Her brother shrugged, clearly not offended. "Hey, just an idea."

"A bad one," Aang muttered, looking extremely angry.

"Oo, wait. I got it." Sokka took a straw from my mattress and shoved it into my mouth.

I knew where he was trying to go with that, but "I don't think it's working," I said. While everyone stared, I spit it out onto the floor. _How did I ever find that comforting?_

"Try to think of something from your past that triggers your emotions," Toph suggested quietly.

"The Fire Nation," Smellerbee continued, her voice a hushed whisper. "Remember what they did to your family."

"Close your eyes. Picture it."

_I don't want to, I don't want to._

But the pictures surfaced against my will.

_ "Where's my daddy?" I demanded hoarsely. "What did you do to him?"_

_ The soldier who'd kicked at me laughed and pointed to the charred rubble that was once my home. "Your dad's in there, kid. I don't think you'll be seeing him again." Even my eight-year-old brain understood what that meant. Tears burned in my eyes – a thousand times more painful than the flames that had burned in my home. My heart seared with anger. A single scorched cherry blossom twirled through the air and landed on my sleeve. I brushed it off thoughtlessly, my body trembling._

"No!" I protested to them, my eyes firmly shut. The word did the trick, and the image dissipated. "It's too painful," I explained shakily.

"Maybe this will help," Katara murmured; she almost sounded reassuring for a moment. I felt her draw very close to my back, and heard some water swishing through the air. Then a gentle glow filled the sides of my vision, and the room slowly came into focus around me. A very cool, pleasant sensation swirled around in my mind, clearing away the fog.

I watched in amazement as the planks of the floor slowly disappeared, revealing the blue waters of a lake. It was enormous, and it seemed as though it might go on forever. Then I looked further along. I saw a man standing in the middle of the lake.

_Long Feng,_ I remembered. _Leader of the Dai Li._ He was staring at me as though I were dangerous, and then we plunged into the lake together. I felt as if I were sinking through air. I emerged in a giant chamber, obviously created by Earthbenders. My vision changed again, to a much smaller room. I started to speak, to ask where I was, but I realized my mouth was bound with cloth. A man was standing in front of me, wearing green and gold and a strange hat. I panicked, and struggled to reach my sword, but my hands were tied as well. Then I saw it—the revolving yellow light. It circled my vision again and again, until it was all I could focus on.

The man was speaking now… "There is no war within the walls. Here, we are safe. Here, we are free." Slowly, slowly, his voice faded into the background. The light consumed my vision and my muscles relaxed until I was gone. My eyes fluttered shut, and suddenly there was an explosion of noise around me. I cringed, expecting an attack, but then remembered where I was.

"They took me to a headquarters under the water," I told everyone. "Like a lake."

"Wait!" Sokka cried. "Remember what Joo Dee said? She said she went on vacation to Lake Laogai!"

I jumped to my feet in excitement. "That's it! Lake Laogai."

"Let's go!" Katara announced, pulling at the sleeve of Sokka's shirt in exhilaration.

"How do we know where we're going?" Toph demanded as she followed us in our race down the road.

"Sokka has a map," I reminded her. "You saw it."

"BLIND!" she screamed at me.

"Oh, right."

We arrived at Lake Laogai after a good half hour sprint. Even after a lifetime in the trees, I could barely breathe. A giant pain ripped at my sides, and dots swam in my vision. The rest of the gang and even my Freedom Fighters were breathing hard, but I guess I'd been out of it longer than the rest of them. Every gust of breeze on my face felt like a gift.

"So," Sokka panted, "Where's this secret headquarters?"

"Under the lake… I think." Everyone looked at me sharply and I scratched my head in confusion.

Toph came to my rescue. "There's a tunnel right there near the shore," she told us. She walked away, whistling, and headed straight for the water. I had no clue what she was doing—_Isn't she blind?_—but before Toph actually touched the water, she jumped in an Earthbending move. A stone pathway sprung up through the water, leading to a raised circle. Toph Earthbended the disc that covered it out of the way.

Satisfied that the path was safe, I led the gang down the pathway and stared down the hole with them. It was pitch black down there, but the rungs of a ladder could be seen faintly marking the sides. Momo flew away, chattering anxiously. I didn't blame him—this place had unpleasant memories for me.

"So who goes in the dark creepy hole to the brainwashing facility first?" Sokka asked.

"Jet," Katara decided instantly. I looked at her, stung that she _still_ wouldn't trust me, and apparently something in my face got to her. "It's just that you know the area better than we do. That's all."

"Sure it is," I muttered. I glanced back at Smellerbee, who nodded in support. Taking a deep breath, I started my descent down the ladder. My shoes made soft noises on the metal rungs, and some of them felt wobbly in the rock wall. "Come on," I called back up to everyone. "It's a little dark, but we should be okay."

"Coming down," Sokka called. I continued on the ladder, one foot after the other in monotonous rhythm.

"Heads up!" Katara's voice echoed down. I looked above me in shock—I STILL couldn't see Sokka. _Just how far down is this thing?_

"I'm next!" Toph asserted. About twenty steps later, Aang's voice faintly reached my ears, and he joined the ladder brigade. By the time Smells and Longshot got on, I couldn't even hear them anymore and my arms were completely numb. _This entire thing is taking forever…_

"Jet," Sokka shouted from above, "Smellerbee and Longshot are coming now." I paused and looked up. Sokka's outline was barely visible in the blackness. _I've been slowing down? Since when?_

"This is taking too long!" Toph shouted. "It'll be three days from now before we even GET to the Dai Li."

"Shhh," Katara chided, her voice slightly closer. "I'm sure Jet didn't get there any faster than we did. How else are we going to get down?"

"I have an idea," Toph returned. I could hear the smile in her voice.

"Toph, what are you—" Katara's whisper was cut off by a giant grating noise. I felt the air whistling around me, but I wasn't moving my hands. I hadn't even let go of the ladder!

"What's going on?" I shouted. No one responded, which meant that no one knew. Suddenly, the grinding noise stopped. My body tried to keep moving downwards, and my weight tugged at my arms until it hurt just to grip the rung. After a few seconds' pause, during which I froze and waited for the noise again, something crushed my head.

"Ow!" I hissed. The pressure disappeared and I looked up to see… Sokka.

"Sorry!" he apologized. "But Toph says we can go down now. I think you're right near the bottom anyway." He looked down at a point just past me, and I followed his example. Sure enough, there was the floor. The familiar strange green glow that emanated from the crystals greeted me. I released my death grip on the rungs and landed on the balls of my feet.

"What did she DO?" I breathed. Sokka landed with a thump next to me. Katara fell next. I caught her out of decency, but she pulled away from me as soon as possible. _She's in my past, anyway, _I thought gruffly, though her rejection still hurt.

"If you try to catch me," Toph announced, "I will attack you." She landed heavily on the ground, followed by Aang (who, of course, Airbended gracefully down), Smellerbee, and Longshot. _He's quiet even when he's falling,_ I observed ruefully. "And in case you're curious, I simply rotated the earth chamber so that the part of the ladder that we were on was on a different part of the wall. Then, I just let us fall."

"Give us some warning next time," Katara suggested balefully.

"Come on, guys," I ordered. They fell back without a word of protest, and why should they have challenged me? I had been here before, not them. We rounded the corner of our narrow hallway and walked down a flight of stairs into the main corridors. Everywhere we looked, green crystals gave eerie light to this place. "It's all starting to come back to me," I whispered. I headed over to a nearby open door and peered inside.

It was a room full of strange women with identical smiles and identical clothing. They looked like puppets, or dolls, and it sent a shiver up my spine. In front of them stood one Dai Li agent who was grinning.

"We chose him because he has the perfect smile," Long Feng had told me as I'd been forced by this room. I moved on now with a shudder, but their peculiar voices echoed down the hall after me.

"I'm Joo Dee," the man announced. "Welcome to Ba Sing Se."

"I'm Joo Dee," the women repeated in perfect unison. "Welcome to Ba Sing Se."

"We are so lucky to have our walls to create order," he continued. I could picture the smile on his face.

"We are so lucky to have our walls to create order," they mimicked. I brushed off their voices with a shake of my head.

"I think there might be a cell big enough to hold Appa up ahead…" I stopped in front of a large stone door. "I think it's through here."

"How're we gonna—" Sokka began, but Toph moved forward and used Earthbending to get the job done. "Oh, right," he finished sheepishly. We entered the dark cave together, unsure of what to expect.

_Something about this doesn't…_

The stone door that seemed to be our only way out slammed shut. I never finished the thought.

We were plunged into pitch blackness for a split second, but then those strange crystal lights came to life again.

_But how did the door… Long Feng._

I saw him standing there, looking at us without interest. The man who had taken my memory, something more precious than my family and my friends and even my Freedom Fighters. _I'll destroy him._

"Now that's something different," Sokka proclaimed. He was looking up; I saw the Dai Li agents hanging from the ceiling or even gripping it with their strange rock gloves. _He wants to fight us._

"You have made yourselves enemies of the state," Long Feng told us grimly. "Take them into custody."

I pulled out my hook swords and waited for the inevitable charge. I picked out two of them in the crowd and rushed. They tried to hit back with stone fists but it was useless; I knocked them clean out of the air. I slid right past the first one, my heart pounding, and tripped the second with my sword. He fell, hard, and I scrambled to my feet.

I headed towards another pair of Dai Li; they were sneaking up on Longshot while he was taking down some of their friends. I leapt on the first guy's back with a shout. He cried out in surprise and dropped. His friend turned to stare at me with hostility and grabbed the neck of my armor with a rocky fist.

"I don't need Earthbending to take care of you," he breathed. I tried to pull away, but I couldn't break free of the rock. I saw his fist whizzing through the air, aiming right for my nose. Instinctively I flinched, waiting for the pain, but it never came.

His grip loosened and I fell to the floor beside him. There was only one difference between the two of us: I was still breathing. I got to my feet again, dazed; it took my brain a second to register what I was seeing. It was an arrow, sticking out of the Dai Li's back. I looked over at Longshot and found his eyes blazing at me. Then the battle called my attention again and Iran off.

My eyes focused on Toph, maybe because I wasn't sure how she'd do in this fight. But I didn't have to worry about her, because she was Earthbending like it was nobody's business. Only two agents stood before her, and one behind her. She dispatched the two before her with blocks of stone, but the one behind her shot out a rock fist that latched onto the back of her shirt.

_Oh no you don't, _I shouted to myself. The rock fist was pulling her away from me and I acted fast, running and jumping into the air. For one terrifying second I thought we would collide, but I flew right behind her. I reached out with one of my swords and hooked it around her, pulling her from the stone's grip. A strange whistling noise sounded behind us, but it was cut short. On the ground next to us as we landed was Longshot with an empty bow. He'd taken out a rock fist meant to grab us.

Two more Dai Li rejoined the one that Longshot and I had foiled. They shot three stone fists at Longshot, who still didn't have his bow ready. I leapt in front of him and knocked them out of the air without a second thought.

"Thanks," Toph panted, her voice rough. I got the feeling she didn't have to thank people too often.

"No problem," I replied. I turned back to Longshot to say something, but he was already gone, fighting side by side with Smellerbee. Toph ran off, too, and I started to follow her when something stopped me cold.

"Long Feng's escaping!" Aang shouted.

_He's not going to get very far,_ I promised, and took off after Aang. We rushed through the now-open doorway and down the hallway. I saw the tail of his outfit as it rounded a corner and led us into a room filled with open pipes. But Long Feng was nowhere to be seen. I ran into the room anyway, which went against all of my woodsy instincts.

And there was a good reason I had those instincts—Long Feng dropped from the ceiling, landing behind us with a THUMP. Once again, he sealed our exit and any hope of escape.

"Alright, Avatar," Log Feng rumbled threateningly. "You've caused me enough problems. This is your last chance, if you want your bison back."

"You DO have Appa," Aang roared. "Tell me where he is!"

"Agree to exit the city now, and I'll waive all charges against you and allow you to leave with your lost pet."

I raised my swords threateningly. "You're in no position to bargain."

You are in a position to beg for a mercy that will never come.

"Am I not?" he sniffed haughtily.

"You're DEFINITELY not," Aang asserted.

"Jet." Long Feng turned to me and I tensed. "The Earth King has invited you to Lake Laogai." At those words, my mind went carefully and coolly blank. The only thing that remained in my head was the perfect response.

"I am honored to accept his invitation."

A cool voice entered my head. _Attack._

My body responded without a second prompting. It whirled and started for Aang, slashing out towards his neck with both swords. I stared in horror and tried to shout out, but my mouth wouldn't move. My body rushed towards him again, a feral cry of anger ripping from its mouth. Aang backed away for a second time.

_Coward,_ the cool voice hissed. _He's a coward. Why are you fighting this? If you help, we can destroy him that much faster._

_I don't WANT to destroy him. Long Feng's the evil one here! Attack him!_

_ No. Don't you see? HE'S the one. HE turned Katara against you. HE made Sokka ruin your hope for the future. HE'S the reason your life was destroyed. And while he ruined everything you ever worked for, he sat there and ate your food and pretended to like you. But he doesn't. You had Katara, and he wanted her, and he destroyed you to get her. Now you're falling apart, and it's all his fault._

All… his… fault…

Hidden reserves of anger rushed up within me—I might not have had control of my body, but I could still feel. The voice in my head leaped gleefully on the anger, relishing the extra power. It renewed its attack on Aang with more force than ever, and this time I jumped on for the ride. My anger fueled the monster within, making it stronger. I tried to shout with fury at him, tell him why I was attacking, but I couldn't. Even with the rage, the voice was still in control.

And I didn't like it.

"Jet, it's me Aang!" he shouted desperately, backing away from my hook swords again. "You don't have to do this!"

_I can't let this thing take control. I can take Aang on all by myself._

"I'm afraid he no longer has a choice," Long Feng told him.

More anger rushed up at HIS voice than at Aang's. I tried to use it to redirect the voice, but it didn't work.

_Attack._ The voice was colder than ever, as if it were upset at my resistance.

_NO!_

_ Attack,_ it repeated, but I kept my grip on my muscles. I felt my body breathing hard, preparing for its next move. I tried to reach out, tried to seize the muscles and keep it from assaulting my friend again.

_ATTACK,_ the voice blared in my head. I wasn't prepared for the strength of its message, and lost everything that I had gained. My body swung back into motion and shouted in triumph. But I could tell as it ducked, weaved, and dodged as it tried to stop Aang. I could tell it was getting tired. Aang shot at me with a blast of air. My hands dragged my swords along the ground and they sparked, slowing my progress.

"Jet, I'm your friend!" Aang shouted. "Look inside your heart!"

_I know! _I cried out miserably. _And I'm trying! Don't you understand?_

"Do your duty, Jet," Long Feng commanded.

_I hate you!_ I screamed, but my body took another step towards Aang, raising my swords as I watched from the sidelines.

I was powerless to stop it.

"He can't make you do this!" Aang gasped. "You're a Freedom Fighter!"

The voice seized for a moment as a rush of happiness and pride flooded my system. I knew its weakness then—called up every memory of my past that I could remember.

_Smellerbee showed off her swords in front of her old tent, a dagger clenched in her teeth…Pipsqueak and The Duke sat together, talking…I came closer to Katara, inhaling the scent of flower petals…The Freedom Fighters cheered; we'd driven the Fire Nation out of the village at last…Smellerbee and Longshot were the only ones left after I collapsed…Lee and his Uncle were always mysterious…The passengers of the ferry stared up at me like I was a hero, but I was no hero…Long Feng's losers dragged me away and robbed me of my past…_

The images started to blend together and the voice was completely paralyzed, utterly overwhelmed. Warmth settled in my chest and forced the blackness out. I shoved it in a box in the deep recesses of my mind, forever mastered and never again to be disturbed.

"Do it! Do it now!" Long Feng commanded. The hairs on my arms stood on end at his voice.

_With pleasure._

I snarled and turned around, launching one of my hook swords at his head. The air screamed as the blade sliced through it, narrowly missing Long Feng. It embedded itself in the wall and Long Feng shifted. A giant dust cloud rose up, obscuring my vision. Aang's shocked and happy face disappeared. Everything disappeared, including the head of my most hated enemy.

I froze, waiting. _What is he doing?_ By the time I figured it out, it was too late. An enormous weight crashed into my chest. My lungs spat up all the air they could hold and my body erupted in pain. I crumpled to the floor, unable to support myself. With every faint rising and falling of my chest, a stabbing hurt entered my rib cage region.

My eyes were forced to focus on the ceiling. I heard Aang try and fail to end Long Feng, but I didn't mind.

_No one is going to stop him but me._

_And I will never get that chance._

Aang came to my side, and I knew he was aching with the disappointment at not finding Appa. "I'm sorry, Aang," I breathed weakly. The words hurt, but the truth of them hurt more. I WAS sorry. Sorry I couldn't help him find his bison, sorry I blamed him for everything, sorry I'd taken Katara away from him when I didn't deserve her, sorry I'd sacrificed people, sorry I'd harbored hatred for so long. I was so sorry for so many things, and now when it mattered most, it hurt too much to admit.

"Don't be," he reassured me.

_But I always will._

I heard the door slide open and the shocked gasps of my other friends. Their footsteps pounded towards me and they circled me. Katara fell to her knees and I stared at her out of the corner of my eyes. I never wanted to forget her. I loved her, no matter how much I pushed her aside for other things, no matter how much pain I'd caused her. I loved her, and once I finished memorizing her face, I could carry her with me forever.

"This isn't good," she murmured, turning to the others. Her hands were glowing with water, but I could feel the hurt. I could feel the pain. No water, however magical, would help me now.

"You guys go find Appa," Smellerbee whispered. "We'll take care of Jet."

"We're not going to leave you," Katara protested. For a second, I had delusions that she wanted to stay with me. But I was not her focus—it was my Freedom Fighter Smellerbee, who was going to risk everything for me.

I didn't deserve that, either.

"There's no time. Just go. We'll take care of him. He's our leader."

Longshot's voice shook my body to its core. I clenched my eyes for a moment, forcing the tears away. _I still don't deserve this. He finally rejoins me after I realize I don't deserve it._

They were all staring across the way at Longshot, but he stared down at me. I read his eyes, and his conflicted feelings. He was still angry, but I was his leader. I read something else, too, and it hurt too much to think about.

"Don't worry, Katara," I murmured to her. I stared at her for a long moment. "I'll be fine." I smiled weakly at her and waited, perhaps in the hope that she would say something to me. Instead, she closed her eyes in obvious pain and got up, following her friends out of the room.

As Smellerbee began to weep, I heard Toph whisper something across the room. It echoed and rebounded, and eventually reached my ears.

"He's lying."

**A/N: Well, I'm back! Sorry for the long delay with the story, guys. February has been a not so hot month for me. Friend drama, schoolwork piling up, family issues, economy problems... the list goes on and on. Though I can say, frankly, that nothing seems to compare to what Jet went through just now.**

**Anyways, here's an extra long chapter just for being so awesome. And now all that remains is the epilogue. Yup! It's almost over. Who's sad to say byebye to Jet? I am, at least. :'(**


	14. Epilogue

.: Epilogue :.

_Insightful little Earthbender,_ I smiled to myself. Smellerbee's fingers gently stroked my forehead, and Longshot docked an arrow onto his bow. I saw what they were planning to do before they even got to it. They'd finally come to understand me, and respect me. I'd gotten Longshot's loyalty back. I had everything that I'd wanted since Katara left the first time.

But I knew what had to happen. It was my responsibility as a leader, and a friend. No matter how selfish I wanted to be, I had to do what was best for my Freedom Fighters.

And that meant they had to leave.

"Don't kid yourself," I wheezed. "Don't bother."

"Jet," Smells protested. "I've been with you through everything. I can't leave you now."

"Everyone's got to grow up sometime," I told her. "You guys don't need me anymore. You've got a great life here." I drew a deep breath, and it hurt, but I forced the words out. "Leave me."

"We're not leaving you," Longshot told me. I could feel the vibrations of the Dai Li as they rushed down the corridors.

"Go," I commanded. They drew closer to me, and I smiled up at them. "I can't get out of here. You know it, and I know it. I'm already gone… are you really going to fight over me if I'm not here to watch you?"

"You're always here," Smells sobbed, pulling out her dagger. "You can't go. I don't care what you say, Jet. I still need you. We both still need you."

"There's a difference between what you need and what you want," I murmured. I stared at Longshot. I knew he'd understand—the pain in his eyes told me that I was right. I blinked up once at him and the corners of his lips curved into a smile. Then his arm shot out and latched around Smellerbee's wrist.

"Come on Longshot, let's… What are you doing?" she shrieked. "No, Longshot, we can't go!" He dragged her away, but her breaking voice echoed around me. "Longshot, Jet needs us! We have to help him! Longshot, please!" Her voice traveled above me, and I wondered absentmindedly if they were scaling the walls. Her protests dissipated into sobs, and after that last moment my ears shut down.

I waited for the end in silence, my legs slowly growing numb. I thought back slowly over my life: losing my parents, losing Katara, losing the Freedom Fighters, losing Sneers, losing my memory, losing the fight, losing my chance at revenge. Always losing.

_I licked a whole legion of Dai Li for you, dad,_ I laughed to myself. My smile quickly turned into a wince.

_But I missed the most important one. He got away._

My brain slowed down… down… down… down…

_It's so strange… I spent my whole life fighting the Fire Nation. But it was one of my own people who betrayed me._

One last thought echoed in my mind.

_I always thought that I was doing the impossible. But even in the end, I failed them all._

__**A/N: And thus ends the story of Jet. *sniffle* Thank you to Tainted for replying to the last chapter, and thanks to everyone who has glanced at this story or read it for any amount of time. You guys are the bestest :)**

**I happen to have another story saved up on the old hard drive. It's an AU set in the future; sort of my own version of events if all my fantasies regarding Avatar came true. I'll probably post it within the week, as my midterms draw closer and my procrastination becomes more desperate (YUCK). Until then, adieu!**

**~Nineteeners ;]**


End file.
